At FEH, we are always fascinated to see what your money gets you in various locations around the United States and beyond. We recently got a listing known as Ivy Acre on our site located about an hour or so outside of Chicago, Illinois in a town called Rockford that prompted us to see what the area has to offer it residents and folks potentially looking to move there.
Rockford, Illinois is located in northern Illinois just south of Wisconsin halfway between Galena and Chicago and is the county seat of Winnebago County. Early settlers to the area referred to Rockford as “Forest City” because of the river valley’s lush woods. Today, Rockford is called, “The City if Gardens” due to the fact that it has seven-thousand acres of parkland, tree-lines streets, a riverside trail, a green downtown and several public gardens.
In terms of amenities, Rockford seems to offer something for everyone. The Rock River splits the area into east and west. The waterfront areas house clusters of museums and local businesses including the Burpee Museum of Natural History, which is rated as one of the top four children’s museums in the United States in addition to Rockford Art Museum, Ethnic Heritage Museum and the Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum. Rockford is big enough to offer city-sized art offerings yet small enough to make the venues affordable.
Visitors to the “City of Gardens” could spend the their entire trip visiting the multitude of gardens including Anderson Japanese Gardens, which is considered one of the top two Japanese gardens in the Western hemisphere (the other one being in Portland, Oregon). Another standout garden is Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden that houses more rare trees and shrubs that botanists’ say there is only one other comparable garden in the world with these kind of unique and scarce plant specimens and that is in France. Klehm Arboretum holds year-round garden tours, flower shows, garden concerts and gardening workshops for visitors to enjoy.
Rockford also offers, hundreds of restaurants, all kinds of shopping ranging from locally owned to big box stores. With over 10,000+ acres of parks and forest preserves there are plenty of outdoor activities to choose from including hiking, biking, roller blading, swimming, picnic areas, boating, camping and more. Rockford also has twenty-five miles of interconnected trails for the outdoor enthusiasts to enjoy all year round. Rockford also has more golf holes per capita then any other place in the world, which is why both Fodor’s and Golf Digest have coined Rockford as the “The Best Mid-sized City for Golf” several years running.
Now that Rockford has gotten our attention with its many cultural offerings, outdoor activities and the overall good quality of life it offers its residents lets turn out attention to the real estate. Enter Ivy Acre, a Rockford home designed by Jesse A. Barloga. Jesse A. Barloga (1888-1947) was a notable Rockford architect. Barloga homes are typically sought after because of the large room sizes and his forward thinking design. This property is currently occupied by its third owner (who is a retired real estate agent) and has been meticulously maintained to reflect the home’s original design and character.
Ivy Acre is a 3600 square foot home that has 2 stories with a partially finished lower level and is being sold by its current owner, who is a retired real estate agent. The kitchen has been updated and offers built in appliances. The property has hardwood floors throughout except in the kitchen, bathrooms and vestibule areas where the flooring is either slate or tile for easy clean up and low maintenance. The smallest bedroom in the property already has plumbing making it ready for a new bathroom addition. The partially finished basement offer 4 rooms including a family room with hardwood floors and a fireplace along with another room that has a workbench and lots of storage space. The basement also has dual staircases leading to the main level.
All in all, Rockford looks like a great place to live. Home prices are very reasonable and there are amenities galore. Ivy Acre is a fantastic historic property that has been lovingly cared for and is being offered at a great price. If you are looking for a wonderful historic home in an area that has lots to offer then Rockford, Illinois is certainly worth exploring.
