Residents reintroduce controversial proposal for home near landmark Old Spring Tavern 

Former Nakoma neighborhood residents Jon and Brenda Furlow are once again seeking to build a home on a vacant lot next to the landmark Old Spring Tavern near the UW Arboretum after withdrawing an earlier proposal in May, the Wisconsin State Journal reports.

Historic preservationists are opposing the project as before, citing concerns that the project is too big for the lot and the feasibility of winning city approval. The home would be two stories and 4,492 square feet in size with a two-car garage; it would sit on a quarter-acre lot at 3701 Council Crest.

The former tavern at 3706 Nakoma Rd. was built in the 1800s and initially used as a stagecoach stop before its conversion from a tavern and hotel to a private residence in 1895. In 1972, the grounds surrounding it were named a city landmark, and the spot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

The Furlows’ new application is for a home the same size as previously proposed, and it would preserve a historic black walnut tree around 250 years old. The new proposal, however, attempts to better show the scale of the home as compared to the tavern and asserts that construction will improve the area’s stormwater management.

The Landmarks Commission will consider the proposal Aug. 14.