Homes of 'True Believers' - Page 2

"We decided that [this year] it was time to also celebrate the 'ranch house,'" Steinberg said of a 1950 home built by Sierra Builders in the Hollywood Park tract, a place that past tours have not visited. "We're excited about that, because it's just a quintessential mid-century neighborhood."

Another ranch house on the tour is a custom home built in 1959 by Floyd Cantrell in Steinberg's own neighborhood of South Land Park.

"Their house is filled to the gills with all the wonderful [MCM] lifestyle things," she said of the Cantrell home, which contains a jukebox and assorted mid-century modern memorabilia on display.

Some of the homes have undergone intriguing upgrades in recent years, she said, adding, "The upgrades that we're highlighting have to do with sustainability and economy."

Among these are a drought-tolerant garden installed for an Eichler by Sacramento Modern treasurer Zann Gates and her partner Jeff Roush. As Steinberg explained proudly, "It shows people how you can have a nice garden and still be water-wise."

Another upgrade involves reuse of vintage cabinets salvaged from Beale Air Force Base for the Sierra Builders ranch house, which also has Heath tiles in the kitchen and a vintage pink sink.

The other Eichler on the tour has been restored by owners Andy Lacey and Karen Ronneback, who chronicled the process on their blog, fogmodern.com.

"We're both pretty passionate about what we've got and preserving it," Lacey told us last year for a story about their blog. "I always had it in my mind that I would write about what we did."

Possibly the tour's most unusual house is a custom modern home that stands out in its Land Park neighborhood. Steinberg acknowledged that in terming it "an exceptionally rare bird," in part because it was designed and started in 1959 by architects Carter Sparks and Donald Thaden and then finished by Sparks in 1967.

Registration for the June 18 Sac Mod home tour at Alice Birney Elementary School (6251 13th Street) begins at 8:30 a.m. and the tour closes at 3 p.m. Tickets are $35 for non-members ($20 for members) of Sac Modern and include a collectible guidebook, complementary bottle of water, and sampling of the assorted retro candy, toys, and other curios available at the tour homes.

Since tour capacity is limited, Steinberg says don't delay. "We try to cap it at a thousand," she said last week, noting that the 2013 tour did sell out. "We've sold over half of our 2016 tickets already." For tickets, click here.