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She didn't think anything of the blue paper. It rarely crossed her mind and remained tucked away in that same closet for decades.
"It was almost like any other manual they would have given me with the house," the mom of two said. "I honestly didn’t even register the house was as old as it was or the plans were as old as they are."
But recently, Viteritti came across the blueprint while preparing to put her longtime Pascack Road home on the market. And this time, she realized the home that kept so many of her family's memories told a story of its own.
Built in 1939 by renowned Bergen County architect and artist B. Spencer Newman -- a founding member of the Hackensack Art Club and on exhibit at the Steuben House -- the Tudor-style home was a model house in one of Hillsdale's first developments: Saddle Wood Hills, offered between $7,000 and $30,000.
Now, it's listed at $749,000.
Following a population boom in the late 1940s, Hillsdale expanded again, bringing TV actors, baseball players and more stars to the area.
When Viteritti first saw her house, she didn't know much about Hillsdale at all. But she fell in love with the borough's idyllic image, "straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting," she said.
"The realtor made the appointment and it was like 'Miracle on 34th Street.' It hit me like a ton of bricks."
Over the years, Viteritti only fell more in love with her community. It's where she raised her two boys, and holds memories of birthdays, holidays and major milestones close to her heart.
"When you say 'It takes a village,' Hillsdale is that village.
"It's local living. The hardware store still carries old keys from the 1930s. The hot dog lady is still selling the same hot dogs."
But what Viteritti is most proud of is the life she has created for her family in the borough: "The great schools, community and programs that Hillsdale offers children," she said.
"As an immigrant, little by little it registers. I am the American Dream.
"That's what this house means to me."
An open house is scheduled for Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m.
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