By LESLIE COLLINS
Northeast News
December 4, 2013

Earlier this year, Pendleton Heights received recognition as a Best Old House Neighborhood by This Old House magazine. Now, you can catch a glimpse of what the neighborhood has to offer during its annual Holiday Homes Tour on Saturday, Dec. 7.

Five homes on Olive Street will be on tour and include three Queen Anne Victorians, one Folk Victorian and one Italianate. All of the homes were built in the late 1800s and have been restored. One of the homes, 521 Olive, received several awards in the 1990s for its restoration. 513 Olive is the newest rehab, said Jessica Ray, president of the Pendleton Heights Neighborhood Association.

“This is a unique chance to see several modern interpretations of traditional Victorian homes,” she said. “And a couple of the homeowners will even open their second or third stories, where attendees are in store for some fun surprises.”

For added pedestrian safety, Olive Street will be closed to vehicle traffic the day of the tour.

In addition to the homes tour, the neighborhood will host an artist market inside the Scuola Vita Nuova (SVN) Charter School, 544 Wabash Ave., Kansas City, Mo., from noon to 4 p.m. Fourteen artists will display their wares which will range from photography to fiber art to ceramics and more. Produce from Pendleton Heights’ community garden will also be available for purchase.

Inside the school, attendees can relax and stay warm by checking out the coffee and dessert lounge catered by Eleos Coffee in the SVN lobby.

For those with a heftier appetite, four food trucks will be located in the SVN parking lot and will include Indios Carbonsitos, Derr’s Wiener Wagon, Cajun Cabin and Kettle Corn.

New to the homes tour this year is the addition of live music which will be located in front of 502 Olive from noon to 4:30 p.m. next to the bonfire.

The tour itself will run from noon to 5 p.m. Advance tickets cost $10 and $15 the day of the tour. To purchase tickets online, visit http://phtour.uticketit.com/ or purchase tickets the day of at the ticket booth, 546 Olive Street, Kansas City, Mo. Tour maps and booklets will also be available at the booth. Parking will be available at Garfield Elementary School, 436 Prospect Ave.

Ray said attendees shouldn’t be deterred by cold weather and that there will be plenty of chances to warm up, whether it’s staying longer inside one of the homes on tour, checking out the artist market or cozying up next to the bonfire.

“All of the houses are close together to minimize the time outside if the weather is a little chilly,” she said. “Of course, last year was beautiful, so our fingers are crossed!”

Ray summed up the homes tour, saying, “The Pendleton Heights Homes Tour is definitely not your typical homes tour. We want attendees to spend the afternoon with us, enjoy lunch, browse the artist market, stroll along the street enjoying the music and chatting with neighborhood residents.

“More than 100 residents and friends volunteer their time in order to pull off this event, so take a few minutes to chat with them and find out why they love our neighborhood so much; you might just fall in love, too.”