Frank Lloyd Wright Group Fights to Save His Home in Phoenix From Demolition

Conservationists are rushing to win landmark status for a home in Arizona built by iconic architect Frank Lloyd Wright to block its pending demolition.

In June, developer 8081 Meridian paid $1.8 million for the David and Gladys Wright House -- which Frank Lloyd Wright designed for one of his sons. Its plan is to tear down the house in the Arcadia neighborhood of Phoenix to make way for two McMansions.

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The developer had agreed to hold off on the house's demolition for 60 days while it explored a deal with the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy. But time ran out, and now the conservancy has launched a petition to save the house from destruction by designating it a historic landmark.

Demolition permits can't be granted for properties considered for landmark status.

"This house is a piece of history, it represents a piece of Arizona that Frank Lloyd Wright loved so much," Anne Wright Levi, his great-granddaughter, told AZFamily.com.

Built in the 1950s, the Phoenix-area home is considered to be one of Wright's most innovative and significant buildings. The house, with a spiral ramp, was built as he was developing his plans for the Guggenheim Museum in New York, which has a similar look.

The conservancy has proposed other ways to save the home: Buy the house back from the developer for $2.7 million, or parcel the land and just buy back the house for under $1 million. The latter option would still allow the developer to build large structures on the land that could tower over the home.

If you want to sign the conservancy's petition, you can do so by clicking here.


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