A recently windowed wife and daughter of a historic property developer resolved to continue a legacy.  Confronted with significant life changes – the daughter recently married and living part time in another state and the widow in the midst of a national political career and spending significant amounts of time out of town – the two set out to redevelop the upper level of the idle structure into a shared living space for their intermittent stays while in town.

Despite being vacant and unmaintained for nearly forty years and with shingles shedding from the roof and openings visible through the roof structure causing rotting upper floor deck and visible evidence of a past fire, an investigation confirmed the structure had “good bones”.

A restrained solution celebrates the simple honesty of the vernacular architecture coexisting  with  the  relevance  of  modernism.   The  solution  includes arrangement of the long rectangular floor plate with an open living core and kitchen to support the owners’ love of cooking and entertaining, flanked  on  either  end  with  bedroom  suites  for  privacy  –  which  are interchangeable  as  office  space  if  desired.    Window  openings  are retained and re-glazed offering an abundance of natural light to flood the interior from all directions.  The roof is insulated on the upper side allowing the open gambrel structure to both define the interior space and provide the finish.  The flooring is large format porcelain tile throughout with a natural concrete look lending to the motif.  Pocket doors made of salvage wood provide privacy for the bedrooms and tuck out of the way for an open feel when desired.  Structural lateral bracing in the form of steel tubes are left exposed along the long exterior brick walls. Natural concrete countertops and bulb-on-a-chord chandeliers in the kitchen completes the look.

The exterior takes a more traditional approach with much of the exterior skin  retained  or  replaced  in  kind  for  an  appearance  reminiscent  of the original barn.  And a vaguely discernible commercial “ghost” sign painted on the exterior façade is retained for its historic appeal, nodding to the adjacent historic district.

The lower level is reserved for a future retail space – possibly a small coffee shop, specialty grocer or a bistro that fits the appeal of the space and surrounding neighborhood.