A home that could be Arlington’s next local historic district comes with ghost stories attached.
“It has had, over the years, a reputation of having paranormal activity,” said Pierre Yves Cossard, who has owned “Happinest” since 1980.
The 1930s-era Tudor Revival property at 4120 41st Street N. in the Arlingwood neighborhood on Oct. 15 won unanimous Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board (HALRB) support for historic-district designation. Because the property owner initiated the request, it is likely to win speedy approval in coming months by the County Board.
Cossard has never resided in the home himself, having rented it out over the decades, and has no direct experience with any supernatural goings-on. But he told HALRB members that “so many tenants” — “very much down-to-earth” people — have reported unusual occurrences.
In 1932, the vacant 1.56-acre lot was sold to David Ballard and Fannie Foy, who built the home a year later.
The name “Happinest” appears to be a joining of “Happy” and “Nest,” county preservation staff said. Unfortunately for Ballard, things did not end happily — he died in 1946 after falling off the home’s roof.
His widow, Foy, continued to live in the home until 1980 when she sold it to Cossard for an amount not recorded in the county government’s online property records. The home currently is assessed at just under $1.4 million.
Before there was a house on the site, the lot belonged to Crandall Mackey — best known for his crusade against vice in Rosslyn as commonwealth’s attorney in the early part of the 20th century. Mackey bought and sold significant tracts of property as Arlington began to be subdivided into the neighborhoods familiar to current local residents.
Unlike inclusion in the Virginia Landmarks Register and National Register of Historic Places, which are largely honorifics, being placed in a local historic district gives HALRB members a degree of control over future exterior changes to a property.
Having a parcel covered by a local historic district limits options for demolishing a home or making significant alterations to it. As a result, the covenants ultimately may impact the future selling price of the home.
Cossard said he was willing to accept that possibility. “It’s the right thing to do,” he said of placing it in a local historic district.
“Not enough things are being preserved. There’s not enough incentive in Arlington to preserve significant things,” Cossard said, while praising county staff for their research on the history of the parcel.
“I knew a lot of things about it, but the extended research … is absolutely fascinating,” he said.
HALRB members voted 14-0 to support historic-district status.
“This is an excellent example of the kind of stuff that should be preserved here in Arlington,” board member Mark Turnbull said.
“It’s a very unique property, really a special place,” added his colleague Omari Davis.
For a property to qualify for historic-district status, it must meet at least two of 11 criteria set out by the county government. HALRB members determined the Happinest met four of them.
The recommendation to County Board members also included a set of draft design guidelines setting the parameters of future HALRB authority over the site.
The original 1933 home includes a 1960 rear addition, which also is incorporated into the historic district. No surrounding properties will be included in the district.
