WILDWOOD – A Wildwood preservation advocacy group earned a win recently when they found someone interested in preserving the “pizza slice house” and saved it from destruction.
The A-frame house, bought as a Sears, Roebuck kit and put together in 1961, was moved June 7 from its home on West Bennett Avenue, in Wildwood, to Steelmantown Cemetery, in Woodbine, where its future is yet to be decided. The house is also known locally as the “triangle house” and “the A house.”
“I’ve had my eye on that house for over a year, when it sold,” said Taylor Henry, vice president of Preserving the Wildwoods: A Community Alliance, “and about three weeks ago, saw a post on Facebook that the owners had gotten approval to develop the property. I talked with the owners, and they wanted to cooperate and gave us two weeks to find a solution to save the house. They just wanted someone to pay for the move.
“We got a lot of responses of people wanting the house and ideas for the house, but most didn’t know how to move it, nor did they have the money,” she added.
In stepped Edward Bixby, an Upper Township businessman who developed and built homes for over 30 years and has been involved in many historical home renovations.
“A friend of mine asked me to take a look at it because they were interested in saving it,” he explained. “They wanted to know if it was structurally sound and what it would take to move it. I looked at the property, but my friend didn’t have the money or understanding of what it would take to move it and restore it.”
However, Bixby decided he wanted to help save it.
“The building is small, there is no kitchen or bathroom, essentially it’s a shed. I wanted to help our community efforts to save it, though, and decided to help move it to my horse farm. This way, it will be safe, and we can determine how we want to use it.
“It’s difficult for a nonprofit organization to get big projects done if they don’t have the financial backing,” he added. “This helps the organization (Preserving the Wildwoods), we made it happen, and it might help their efforts in the future.”
Even though Bixby is paying a discounted $18,000 to move the building, about half of the regular amount, the preservation advocacy group has a GoFundMe page to reimburse him with whatever they raise. Just over $1,000 had been donated, as of June 10.
“The building is a perfect example of folk art,” explained Henry. “Folk art is something that is created for a purpose, but during the process, art is created.”
The A-frame was owned by Wildwood resident, veteran, and hobbyist Glenn Dye, who used it as a headquarters for his many clubs. It was left unused and unkempt for several years. Taylor said it was full of old glass bottles, which they removed.
Before moving it, Steve Hauck, owner of SJ Hauck Construction, of Pleasantville, said he and his crew “prepped it – removing the decking, reinforcing the flooring, separating the two floors.”
As neighbors watched and captured the event on cell phones, it was split in two and lifted onto two flatbed trucks to travel the 23 miles to the cemetery.
Neighbors lamented that they would need to find other ways to give directions to families and friends, saying, “They used to say turn left at the A-frame, at the pizza slice house.”
“I was amazed by all the ideas for the use of the building,” Henry noted, saying they ranged from “a floating Airbnb to a she-shed to a lakefront chalet.”
“There are a lot of options for its future, including the return to Wildwood if that is what is wanted,” Bixby added. “Structurally, the building is in better shape since it was reinforced for the move. I wanted to keep it alive and by moving it here, we keep it safe until its future is decided. I believe it’s important to give back to the community and this is important to Wildwood.”
To contact Karen Knight, email kknight@cmcherald.com.
