The homeowners’ project goals presented design challenges on the exterior and interior of this well-preserved Victorian classic with Queen Anne and Shingle Style attributes.
On the exterior, the challenge was to integrate an attached garage without changing the home’s appearance on its publicly visible corner lot. Our design solution nestles the one-car garage tightly into the sloping grade on the rear side of the house, blending into the home’s asymmetrical massing. The garage is crowned with railings and trimwork matching existing porches while adding a new amenity, a rooftop deck for dining and entertaining, connecting the kitchen with the existing porte-cochere.
On the interior, the design challenge was to configure a natural transition from the new garage through a functional mudroom and into the existing finished kitchen with minimal disturbance and maximum ease. The resulting open stairway rises into the kitchen beneath a new picture window from a garage-level mudroom after passing through a transitional finished basement area with exercise and storage rooms.
Form and function now complement the home’s generous amenities without compromising its character-defining historic features.