Living in their own home was supposed to be a dream come true for Lee and Diana Wright, who met as residents of Find-a-Way Apartments, a facility for the disabled in Oakley.

        Eight years after they were married, they found their place and the financial means of getting it in October 1999. A $63,500 mortgage and help from the Enquirer's Wish List supporters allowed them to buy a two-bedroom frame house and install wider doors and an electric lift for Diana's wheelchair.

Diana and Lee Wright (Enquirer file photo) | ZOOM |

        Born with cerebral palsy 40 years ago, she has never walked. Her husband, 41, has speech and hearing impairments.

        But they were thoroughly happy in December 1999, when an Enquirer story encouraged donations to retrofit the house so Mrs. Wright could get to and from her job as a volunteer supervisor at the FreeStore/FoodBank, Over-the-Rhine.

        “It's adorable,” she said at the time. “A little cottage.”

        Today, it seems to have some appeal to developer Vandacar Holdings Inc., which is buying land along Interstate 71 in Oakley and developing a retail center for major discount stores and offices.

        “It's very close” to the house, Mrs. Wright says. “Right around the corner.”

        But Vandacar hasn't decided if it needs the Wright house for its broad parking lot, and the city of Cincinnati hasn't decided whether the company can take it.

        “Right now, we're at a standstill,” Mrs. Wright said. “I would love to be doing stuff to the house, but ... there's nothing we can do ... until we're sure if (it) is going to sell.”

        The house, converted from two bedrooms to one to allow for a disability-ready bathroom, needs a new kitchen floor and an air conditioner, she said.

        The Wrights moved in April 8, 2000, after improvements were made to accommodate her wheelchair.

        Looking for another appropriate house would be a hardship, the Wrights said, but living next to a retail center is not what they had in mind when they bought their dream house.

        Mr. Wright, a dishwasher at Cooker's restaurant, Hyde Park Plaza, Oakley, said, “We don't know what we want to do right now.”

        If the developer does not acquire the house, “It's going to be impossible to sell,” Mrs. Wright said. “A resident is not going to want to buy the house.”

        A developer's representative told the Wrights they could have gotten a larger payoff if the house still had two bedrooms, Mrs. Wright said.

        The city is scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday to consider a limit on property acquisitions for the project. Mr. and Mrs. Wright, who have attended a half-dozen meetings already, said they would be there.

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