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Ron has long been involved in property development in the community. His former home, the 1892 mansion at 201 North Huron in Ypsilanti, was turned into a stunning 16,000 sq ft apartment facility. Under his leadership the building was totally upgraded, and the facility enhanced with new modern apartments. The loft units where Ron resided were host to hundreds of guests and the fabled parade parties of the 1990’s caused such a stir that editorials were written in the local papers. The current project – 1901 Washtenaw, is the redevelopment of a 9,000 sq ft house built in 1915. Built as a duplex for a wealthy family from Detroit, Ron is turning the house into a three unit condominium. This project is a test case for the City of Ann Arbor, and has been a training opportunity for different City Departments. The units will be completed in March 2008. The legendary art fair parties have taken place on the lawn with over 500 people attending each event for the past three years. As the concept and building project has unfolded, guests have enjoyed seeing progress from design to implementation. Care has been taken to restore historical details to each unit, and rooms have been returned from chopped up mini apartments to their original grand scale. All have at least one fireplace if not two or three, nine foot ceilings, outstanding trim, plate glass windows and unique features throughout. Ron has transformed a forgotten gem into one of Ann Arbor’s most elegant homes. The opening reception in March 2008 will benefit the Ypsilanti Fund of the Ann Arbor Community Foundation. The name Lerkin comes as a mixture of Miller and Hopkins. Ron and his friend Harriet Hopkins dreamed of building condos when he was growing up. Harriet and her husband lived in the neighborhood where Ron grew up. The two of them – a terrific duo- took their real estate license classes together, and planned and planned. Harriet and her husband moved to Traverse City, and she passed away in the 1990’s. Ron kept his promise of using the name, since their plan had been, of course, to build a dynasty! – and on a small scale Ron has.