Hoosier Cabinet Hardware
AT HOME WITH BEV AND JIM D'ANNA; Window on world of downtown; CoupleNANCY HERRICK
Window on world of downtown
Couple enjoy view of life from 5th-floor condo
With its worn wood floors, oversize windows and open spaces, Jim and Bev D'Anna's downtown loft condominium retains much of its old- time flavor, harkening back more than 100 years to when the building was constructed. The couple's collection of antiques adds to the ambience.
But its owners are decidedly forward-thinking, embracing the adventure that is downtown living and relishing their new life. Even their two dachshunds enjoy the urban lifestyle.
The D'Annas live in the Cawker Building on Wells St., just west of the Milwaukee River.
It originally provided office and commercial space downtown and is named after E. Harrison Cawker, a real estate lawyer.
Vacant for many years, the building was sold and then divided into condos starting in 1996.
The 17 units vary in size and configuration. Some retain the loft look with exposed pipes and beams. The D'Annas, though, dropped the ceiling when they divided the space and opted for a more traditional, less institutional look.
"We wanted some of it to look like 1897 Milwaukee -- which is when it was built," explains Jim D'Anna, who retired from the U.S. Army in 1995 and works as an orthodontist in Wauwatosa. "We were able to find some of the original doors in the basement of the building and had them refinished. The hardware is original, too. And our antiques fit right in. But mainly we wanted a comfortable place to live."
Bev D'Anna says the kitchen also was designed with their antiques in mind.
"We have an old Hoosier cabinet and a wet sink," she explains. "We wanted the right setting for those pieces, but also desired an up-to- date, functional kitchen." The old pieces are across from the new, and they complement each other.
Visitors enter the condo at the end of a long hallway. The guest bedroom and bathroom are off that hallway. It leads to the kitchen, which opens to the sunny dining and living rooms, with their dramatic view of Milwaukee's City Hall and the Milwaukee River. The master bedroom is off the dining space and a large master bathroom can be found down another hallway in the master suite.
The D'Annas acquired many of their antiques in Europe while Jim was in the military.
Bev D'Anna was raised in a military family and met Jim while she was working as a dental assistant in Germany. "Our sons are Army brats, too," she says, referring to John, now 26, and Mark, 23.
The family lived in Brookfield after moving to the area and enjoyed suburbia, especially when their sons were younger.
But the couple's involvement in Historic Milwaukee, the non- profit organization that celebrates Milwaukee's heritage and architecture, gave them a new appreciation for the city.
Downtown is home for the empty nesters. Their fifth-floor windows show some of the best views the city has to offer.
"It's all about the light and the windows," says Jim D'Anna, explaining much of the appeal of their condominium.
"We can watch the boats come in and out and see the bridges go up and down," adds Bev D'Anna. "It's very urban but very livable. People are very friendly and we always wind up chatting when we take the dogs for walks."
And if they miss the yards and trees of suburbia, they have breakfast at the little antique table in their garden room, an enclosed area between the dining room and living room that is filled with light and greenery all year long.
"In summer, we open the windows and it's like being outdoors," she says, "but with wonderful views and within a minute's walk to the theater."
The D'Annas spent time with Entree editor Nancy Herrick on a sunny afternoon as the light danced off the icy edges of the Milwaukee River below.
Q. How long have you lived here? And tell me a bit about your condo's size and configuration.
Bev:
We have lived here since 1999. The unit is 1,820 square feet, with two bedrooms, a living room, a dining room, kitchen, two bathrooms and a small sunroom. The living room is oversized -- 18 by 30 feet -- and the main living area is quite open.
Q. Why did you choose to live here?
Bev:
We were getting close to retirement. We had a big house in Brookfield but were ready for a change. We were very familiar with downtown Milwaukee because we both have taken the Historic Milwaukee architecture classes and have done tours. While downtown one day, we saw a sign on the Cawker Building that said "Condo for Sale." We knew someday we would downsize. We thought why not in a building like this, where we could design our own living space.
Jim:
We had Bucks season tickets and Rep tickets and would spend a lot of time downtown. It seemed I was always driving back and forth from Brookfield. Living downtown just seemed to make sense.
Q. How does this condo differ from where you lived before?
Jim:
We had a 3,600- square-foot, four-bedroom home with a full basement and quite a large lawn to cut. We had lived in Brookfield for six years and I enjoyed that lifestyle. I worked with the Boy Scouts, for example, and still do. But this suits us now.
Bev:
Buying a condo gave us the opportunity to configure the space the way we wanted in an existing building. We thought that would be better than starting completely from scratch.
Q. You have so many lovely antiques. How long have you been collecting and what do you specialize in?
Jim:
Most of our major pieces are from the French part of Switzerland. The dates vary from a buffet from as early as 1760 to the 1800s. We have an upholstered chair from 1850 that could be considered one of the first recliners. We also are interested in early 20th-century American lighting: We have Tiffany lamps and Moe Bridges, Jefferson and Handel lamps that are reverse painted.
Q. Where do you spend most of your time in the house?
Bev:
Probably in the living room and the garden room. But I like to cook, too. Here, in the main area everything is open to almost every other space. I can talk to people while I am cooking because the kitchen isn't an isolated space.
Q. What about this space best reflects you?
Jim:
The fact that we are living where we want to be surrounded by functional antiques that mean so much to us.
Q. Where do you find most of the special things for your condo?
Jim:
We had brought most of the antiques with us when we moved to Brookfield from overseas. But we also have found things from Walker's Point Antiques and Cedarburg Lighting. We find we really like to shop downtown and keep our money here.
Bev:
At first when we moved here we were used to shopping in Brookfield and I would get in the car and make that trip often. But we hardly go to Brookfield anymore. When I come back downtown I really feel as if I've come home.
Q. How long have you been involved with Historic Milwaukee?
Bev: I got involved in 1996 or 1997 after we had moved to the area. I saw the Historic Milwaukee class advertised and I thought it would be fun to get involved. I started with the 10-week architecture class and also learned to be a guide. I do lots of tours for children. I think it's important for them to learn about their city. We talk about the city and its ethnic heritage, among other things. I also help in the Historic Milwaukee office. I've learned a lot and have met many new and interesting people. Jim has taken the class, too.
Jim:
It helped us get to know more about the city. We have lived all around the world and, I have to say, we haven't found a nicer place than Milwaukee.
Credit:MICHAEL SEARS
Source:MSEARS@JOURNALSENTINEL.COM
If Bev and Jim D'Anna pine for the greenery of their former suburban home, they can spend some time in their garden room. The room is filled with plants all year long.
The views from the D'Annas' fifth-floor Cawker Building condominium are among the best in the city. A living room window looking out on City Hall frames a table holding a Milwaukee-made, reverse-painted Moe Bridges lamp.
The D'Annas have military ties. Jim, an orthodontist, was in the Army. Bev was an Army brat. While stationed in Europe, they picked up many of the antiques that now grace their residence.
Credit:MICHAEL SEARS
Source:MSEARS@JOURNALSENTINEL.COM
The kitchen of Bev and Jim D'Anna mixes the old with the new. Bev also likes the openness of the condominium. "I can talk to people while I am cooking because the kitchen isn't an isolated space," she says.
Art, antiques and a wet sink accentuate the kitchen area. "We wanted the right setting for those pieces, but also desired an up-to- date, functional kitchen," says Bev D'Anna.
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