LAKEWOOD’S GRAND DAMES

This month’s Lakewood Home Festival features notable houses who are sisters from other Misters

The “Lakewood Three” sit side by side on the 6700 block of Lakewood Boulevard, all fine examples of French Norman architecture, and all built within a few years of each other in the 1930s, when Albert Dines and Lee Kraft developed the Country Club Estates neighborhood.

Some refer to these three houses as the “Dilbeck triplets,” named for the famed architect who made his mark on Dallas with dozens of residences as well as apartment buildings, restaurants and motor lodges. The Lakewood Early Childhood PTA is featuring these “Dilbeck triplets” during their festival and home tour, Nov. 9-11.

But only one of the three is, in all likelihood, a Dilbeck house, says Willis Winters, who has been working on a book about Dilbeck for the past 12 years.

Winters is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects, the current City of Dallas Parks and Recreation director, and a former Lakewood resident. He grew familiar with Dilbeck in 1997, seven years after the architect’s death, when

Preservation Dallas hosted a Dilbeck home tour and asked Winters for help.

That was more than 20 years ago, and Winters believes in his attempts to drive around town and document Dilbeck’s work, he ascribed more residences to the architect than Dilbeck designed. But what exactly is and isn’t a “Dilbeck” in Dallas is still somewhat of a mystery, even to Winters. Many of Dines and Kraft’s documents were lost from their offices, and the collection that exists at the library suffered extensive water damage. More recently, Winters partnered with Dilbeck’s family to organize attic-stored documents into an architectural library. He receives emails all the time from people asking, “I think I live in a Dilbeck home — can you help me?”

Sometimes, “a good amount of sleuthing” is the best Winters says he can offer since the documentation is lacking.

In the case of the so-called Dilbeck triplets, Winters has seen the architectural drawings of only one home, 6748

Story by KERI MITCHELL | Photography by JENIFER MCNEIL BAKER

Lakewood Blvd., and they bear architect George Marble’s name, not Dilbeck’s. However, “I do see Dilbeck all over this house, as opposed to the other two houses,” Winters says.

He knows that Dines and Kraft often commissioned Marble as they developed Country Club Estates, Westlake Park and Gastonwood, much of which is now considered Lakewood. Winters also knows that Dilbeck moved to Dallas in 1933 and worked with Marble for about six months before branching off on his own. Because the exterior features of 6748 are so distinctively Dilbeck, Winters believes that house, the last of the Lakewood Three to be constructed, is likely a Dilbeck design under Marble’s name.

The other two, however, are what Winters describes as “academic eclecticism,” designed by an architect who likely had strong training and ample resources as he drew front elevations. Dilbeck, dissimilarly, lacked formal architectural training which made his work “more picturesque, more idiosyncratic,” Winters says. The symmetry and straight lines of the French Norman structures at 6726 and 6738 Lakewood are “playing by the rules, so to speak, and Dilbeck did not play by the rules,” he says.

Winters believes that 6726 and 6738 Lakewood Blvd. were designed by the same architect, likely George Marble based on his work with Dines and Kraft. The fact that they probably aren’t Dilbecks “doesn’t diminish them at all,” he says.

“These houses are all of the quality that only five or six of the architects in Dallas in the ’20s and ’30s could have designed,” Winters says. “Whoever the architect was, he was just as important as Dilbeck. It’s just a different style.”

6726 Lakewood Blvd.

• The stone around the front door and on the left side of the house is cut stone, put through a saw blade, as opposed to rough, uncut “field stone,” Winters points out. “Dilbeck, in general, did not use cut stone. It was too ‘finished’ for him.”

• The way the massive chimney faces the street, and steps down and toward the street in tiers — “I know this sounds ridiculous,” Winters says, “but this is not a Dilbeck chimney.”

• The straight gable across the house contrasts with the “infinitely more complex and complicated roof”at 6748 Lakewood Blvd. Dilbeck tended not to use simple gable roofs that ran parallel to the street.

Notice

Notice Public Hearing

Public Hearing

State Highway (SH) 78 (Garland Road/East Grand Avenue)

State Highway (SH) 78 (Garland Road/East Grand Avenue)

At Gaston Avenue

At Gaston Avenue

CSJ: 0009-02-067

CSJ: 0009-02-067

Dallas County, Texas

Dallas County, Texas

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), in conjunction with the City of Dallas, proposes intersection improvements to State Highway (SH) 78 (Garland Road/East Grand Avenue) at Gaston Avenue in Dallas County, Texas. This notice advises the public that TxDOT will be conducting a public hearing on the proposed project. The hearing will be held on Tuesday, November 13, 2018 at the Dallas Arboretum – Rosine Hall, located at 8525 Garland Road, Dallas, TX 75218. Displays will be available for viewing at 6:00 p.m. with the formal hearing starting at 7:00 p.m. The purpose of the hearing is to present the planned improvements and to receive public comment on the proposed project.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), in conjunction with the City of Dallas, proposes intersection improvements to State Highway (SH) 78 (Garland Road/East Grand Avenue) at Gaston Avenue in Dallas County, Texas. This notice advises the public that TxDOT will be conducting a public hearing on the proposed project. The hearing will be held on Tuesday, November 13, 2018 at the Dallas Arboretum – Rosine Hall, located at 8525 Garland Road, Dallas, TX 75218. Displays will be available for viewing at 6:00 p.m. with the formal hearing starting at 7:00 p.m. The purpose of the hearing is to present the planned improvements and to receive public comment on the proposed project.

The proposed project consists of reconfiguring the SH 78/Gaston Avenue intersection to improve traffic operations and mobility. The improvements would modify the intersection to include additional turning lanes, raised medians, adding bicycle and pedestrian accommodations within the project limits, and widening the existing bridges over an unnamed tributary to White Rock Creek. The proposed project would require approximately 0.29 acre of new rightof-way (ROW) and 0.32 acre of temporary construction easements to accommodate the proposed improvements.

The existing intersection has unprotected right turn lanes at Gaston Avenue and offers limited pedestrian and bicycle accommodations. The existing ROW ranges from 54 to 242 feet in width. The proposed ROW would range from 70 to 242 feet in width. Although additional ROW is required, no residential or non-residential structures would be displaced. Information concerning services and benefits available to affected property owners and information about the tentative schedule for ROW acquisition may be obtained from the district office at the address listed below.

The proposed project consists of reconfiguring the SH 78/Gaston Avenue intersection to improve traffic operations and mobility. The improvements would modify the intersection to include additional turning lanes, raised medians, adding bicycle and pedestrian accommodations within the project limits, and widening the existing bridges over an unnamed tributary to White Rock Creek. The proposed project would require approximately 0.29 acre of new right-of-way (ROW) and 0.32 acre of temporary construction easements to accommodate the proposed improvements.

Portions of the proposed project area and construction work would occur in the Federal Emergency Management Agency designated 100-year floodplains of the unnamed tributary to White Rock Creek. The hydraulic design for this project would be in accordance with current Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and TxDOT design policies. Approximately 0.32 acre of waters of the United States are located within the project area; however, no wetlands were observed. Permanent impacts from placement of bridge supports would be authorized under a United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Section 404 Nationwide Permit 14. Approximately 0.32 acre of temporary construction easement area from the Santa Fe Trail property would be required. The proposed project is eligible for a Section 4(f) Exception due to the temporary occupancy of the property.

The existing intersection has unprotected right turn lanes at Gaston Avenue and offers limited pedestrian and bicycle accommodations. The existing ROW ranges from 54 to 242 feet in width. The proposed ROW would range from 70 to 242 feet in width. Although additional ROW is required, no residential or non-residential structures would be displaced. Information concerning services and benefits available to affected property owners and information about the tentative schedule for ROW acquisition may be obtained from the district office at the address listed below.

Environmental documentation, maps showing the project location and design, and other information regarding the project are on file and available for inspection Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at TxDOT Dallas District Office at 4777 East Highway 80, Mesquite, Texas 75150 and are available online at www.keepitmovingdallas.com under Upcoming Public Hearing/Meeting. This information also will be available for inspection at the hearing. Verbal and written comments from the public regarding the project are requested and may be presented at the hearing, or submitted in person or by mail to the TxDOT Dallas District Office or by email to Lani.Marshall@txdot.gov. Comments must be received on or before Wednesday, November 28, 2018 to be part of the official hearing record.

The hearing will be conducted in English. Persons interested in attending the hearing who have special communication or accommodation needs, such the need for an interpreter, are encouraged to contact TxDOT Dallas District Public Information Office at (214) 320‐4480. Requests should be made at least two days prior to the hearing. Every reasonable effort will be made to accommodate these needs.

Portions of the proposed project area and construction work would occur in the Federal Emergency Management Agency designated 100-year floodplains of the unnamed tributary to White Rock Creek. The hydraulic design for this project would be in accordance with current Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and TxDOT design policies. Approximately 0.32 acre of waters of the United States are located within the project area; however, no wetlands were observed. Permanent impacts from placement of bridge supports would be authorized under a United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Section 404 Nationwide Permit 14. Approximately 0.32 acre of temporary construction easement area from the Santa Fe Trail property would be required. The proposed project is eligible for a Section 4(f) Exception due to the temporary occupancy of the property.

If you have any general questions or concerns regarding the proposed project or the hearing, please contact the TxDOT Project Manager, Lani Marshall, P.E., at (214) 319-6585 or Lani.Marshall@txdot.gov

The environmental review, consultation, and other actions required by applicable Federal environmental laws for this project are being, or have been, carried-out by TxDOT pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327 and a Memorandum of Understanding dated December 16, 2014, and executed by FHWA and TxDOT.

Environmental documentation, maps showing the project location and design, and other information regarding the project are on file and available for inspection Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at TxDOT Dallas District Office at 4777 East Highway 80, Mesquite, Texas 75150 and are available online at www.keepitmovingdallas.com under Upcoming Public Hearing/Meeting. This information also will be available for inspection at the hearing. Verbal and written comments from the public regarding the project are requested and may be presented at the hearing, or submitted in person or by mail to the TxDOT Dallas District Office or by email to Lani.Marshall@txdot.gov. Comments must be received on or before Wednesday, November 28, 2018 to be part of the official hearing record. The hearing will be conducted in English. Persons interested in attending the hearing who have special communication or accommodation needs, such the need for an interpreter, are encouraged to contact TxDOT Dallas District Public Information Office at (214) 320-4480. Requests should be made at least two days prior to the hearing. Every reasonable effort will be made to accommodate these needs.

If you have any general questions or concerns regarding the proposed project or the hearing, please contact the TxDOT Project Manager, Lani Marshall, P.E., at (214) 319-6585 or Lani.Marshall@txdot.gov. The environmental review, consultation, and other actions required by applicable Federal environmental laws for this project are being, or have been, carried-out by TxDOT pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327 and a Memorandum of Understanding dated December 16, 2014, and executed by FHWA and TxDOT.