As half of the mother-daughter duo rescuing dilapidated Indianapolis homes on Good Bones (and, now that Karen E Laine has retired, the sole proprietor of Two Chicks and a Hammer), Mina Starsiak Hawk is well acquainted with pressure and heavy lifting. As a mother in her own right, who’s looking to leave a lasting community legacy for her children, she’s ready for even more.

That’s where a seriously run-down old mansion and carriage house come in.

“I’ve spent upwards of the last dozen years renovating homes in Fountain Square [in Indianapolis] and working on improving the neighborhood,” she said. “And it’s been really, really rewarding, and I’ve loved every second of it, but I also really want to stretch my legs creatively. So when this historic Sanders House came on the market, I felt like I just had to have it.” $190,000 later, she did, and her biggest adventure yet was underway.

The 23-room property includes both a 5,500-square-foot, three-story main house and a 2,500-square-foot carriage house and shed addition. In the century since its construction, it’s been chopped up into apartments, set on fire and passed between investors who ultimately sold it off without undertaking its renovation. Not on Mina’s watch. “This house has so much character! I mean, just thinking of the events and stories that these old walls have witnessed … I cannot wait to start working on it and return it to its former glory. I kind of just get giddy thinking about it,” she said.

Envisioning “zero-maintenance” grounds that could accommodate outdoor events for most of the year, Mina hauled out and re-poured the walkway (and literally gave the house new curb appeal with a brand-new city sidewalk), then installed durable turf. She rehabbed charming fish-scale siding on portions of the first floor and replicated it on the second story, then collaborated with specialized craftspeople to replace the stunning curved windows overlooking the porch. She topped the turret with a treatment that would resist patina and the green tone the copper could acquire. A long-lasting shock of red feels fitting for her addition to the neighborhood.

“What you would see when you walked into this house when it was original was a very ornate wood staircase with scrollwork, carving and very fancy newel posts,” Mina said. She was capable of imagining it in its former glory: “I personally look at it and see so much charm. I’m sure the majority of the population does not, but even with the walls, like, charred and falling down it just looks so cool.”