By Stephenie Steitzer
The Cincinnati Enquirer

CLIFTON - Curious neighbors and potential buyers Sunday wandered through the narrow hallways of a home inhabited by the last two presidents of the University of Cincinnati.

The university is selling the old English Cotswold-style house at the corner of Lafayette and Middleton avenues because it is not large enough for the kind of fund raisers a modern-day university president needs to host, said university spokesman Greg Hand.

The university is asking $749,000 for the 89-year-old home. It has five bedrooms, a greenhouse and many original features such as arched doors and leaded casement windows framed with stone.

"It's a grand house," said neighbor Gloria Duncan. "It's just incredible, it really is."

Duncan, 40, and her husband Mike, 42, said, however, that they were surprised the university had made some minor changes that didn't maintain the home's original character.

In the kitchen, for example, Duncan marveled at the original white cabinets but was not impressed by the Formica countertop. She also admired the staircases - except for the carpeting that covered the stairs.

Real estate agent Ora Forusz said some people prefer homes to match the period precisely, but others want some modern features. She said the only thing she would remove if she owned the home is the wallpaper in some of the rooms.

"It's a very unique house and the person who buys it is going to like this style house," she said.

The new university president will live in a home in California, a neighborhood on the far east side of Cincinnati.

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E-mail stephsteitzer@hotmail.com