Renowned astronaut Buzz Aldrin grew up in a handsome stucco house in Upper Montclair, sleeping in a third-floor bedroom where he said he would slip out the window at night, to walk on the roof under the stars.
About two decades after the Aldrins’ moved out, in 1969, the new owners of 25 Princeton Place sat huddled around the television in his old living room, watching Aldrin and Neil Armstrong make their famous steps and leap across the surface of the moon.
But the matriarch of that family, Delores Kelly, died earlier this year, and now the seven-bedroom house is on the market for over $1 million.
For one local man with a passion for preserving Buzz Aldrin’s legacy, it’s now or never. Ilmar Vanderer, 52, has been working since last year on a proposal to turn the home into the Buzz Aldrin House Museum, and now he’s in a sprint to find investors to buy the home for that purpose before it is scooped up by another buyer.
“We should leave something that’s a permanent tribute to Buzz Aldrin,” said Vanderer, who lived his whole life in a home a block away and has been part of past efforts to celebrate Aldrin, including the Man on the Moon committee that lobbied successfully for a middle school to be named for him.
He began working on the proposal after last year’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. He said he had been in touch with the family previously but was surprised to see it listed Nov. 2 for $1,049,000. He said he’s spoken with a relative since then and learned they have gotten numerous offers, including some above the asking price. Messages left for the sellers were not returned Monday.
Vanderer said he knows it may all be in vain, but he’s not going to give up hope that he can find funding for the project.
“I’m working 12 hours a day on this. I want to be able to say I did everything possible to make it happen,” he said. “It’s such a glaring omission that he’s the only astronaut of his era who does not have a museum of this sort. It has to be corrected.”
Vanderer, who has worked in publicity and fundraising for museums, libraries and universities, has been sending his 35-page proposal to anyone he thinks might fund the purchase of the house. He said that includes a venture capitalist on the board of SpaceX, celebrities who know Aldrin, and philanthropists who might be interested in the project. He’s also hoping for government funding and has reached out to local, state and federal sources. A couple people have indicated they’re weighing it, he said.
“It would be a gift to the community and to Buzz Aldrin, for all he’s given us,” he said. “Now is the time for anyone interested to come forward.”
His vision for the museum involves little changes to the existing home, and he anticipates the purchase price would be the overwhelming majority of the budget at first. After that he predicts the annual cost to maintain and run the museum will be about $290,000, including $160,000 in salary for four staffers.
From the outside, he said, not much would change except for signage, and he said the museum would not stand out from the quiet residential neighborhood.
He said the house is believed to be in good to excellent condition and may only need a few upgrades, including updates to electrical, kitchen facilities and basement storage, plus the construction of a bathroom on the first floor to be accessible.
Beyond welcoming guests to the home to explore the exhibits about Aldrin and his life, Vanderer envisions the museum starting up a scholarship fund and a speaker series in Buzz Aldrin’s name, with the latter being held offsite.
The astronaut, who was the second man to walk on the moon but holds the record for the longest spacewalk, has noted several times that he feels his youth in Montclair was formative. At Montclair High School he was a prominent athlete and voted “most likely to succeed.” He went on to West Point and joined the Air Force, flew 66 combat missions in Korea, earned a Ph.D. and was later accepted to the space program.
It’s clear the home in Montclair still means a lot to Aldrin, Vanderer said, as he specially requested to tour the home when he came in 2015 for the dedication of the middle school named for him. Aldrin, who lives in Florida, will turn 91 Jan. 20.
A media contact for Aldrin did not respond to a request for comment.
Vanderer said Montclair has honored its native son many times over the years, but this is a chance to create a concrete legacy for the spaceman in the city.
“Those are fleeting moments,” he said. “This is trying to create something permanent.”
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