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# Porch Chit Chat: Independent Tribune {Historic Concord house reborn, ready to entertain}

April 19, 2015 Jessica Eudy

James Nix \ jnix@independenttribune.com

# Historic Concord house reborn, ready to entertain

CONCORD, N.C. – A historic house on Union Street made its debut Friday as a banquet home, the first to operate in a residential area of the city.

Ritchie Hill, the 3,791-square-foot house built in 1906, was recently renovated by the Ritchie family and will now serve as a venue for weddings, corporate events, parties and family gatherings.

"They preserved and enhanced what already was,” said Concord Mayor Scott Padgett. "They’re going to be good neighbors, and it’s a win-win. We’re very proud of it.”

Banquet homes are large, historic homes used for weddings, parties, corporate retreats and other events. They have gained popularity as a type of land use throughout North Carolina, giving families like the Ritchies a way to make the homes self-sustaining and to generate funds to help keep the homes in good repair.

Heath Ritchie and his three siblings - Robert, Ritchie, Doug Ritchie and Beth Alm, asked Concord City Council to consider allowing banquet homes in residential areas of Concord as one last chance to find a new use for their family’s historic Victorian-style home, which has been in the family for more than 100 years.

Heath Ritchie and his wife and children were the last of the Ritchies to actually live in the home. Before that, several generations have always lived in the home at once. But it’s too big for any of them now to live in and maintain.

In 2008, they placed the 3,791-square-foot house on the market for $900,000. It did not sell. So they came up with a new idea -- a wedding venue.

The Ritchie family asked Concord City Council to change an ordinance to allow banquet homes in residential areas – and to give them a way to keep the house in the family.

Concord City Council voted to allow special-use permits for banquet homes.

Original article published in Independent Tribune, Sunday, March 29, 2015. Online article here.