The existing home, a 2-story brick structure with an English basement, included 3 bedrooms, a galley kitchen and an unfinished basement. The desire was to increase the size of the two smallest bedrooms in the back of the house, as well as to expand the kitchen and the basement, also at the back of the house. Whereas many of the neighboring homes had enclosed porch additions facing the alley, this home still retained its original 2-story exterior porch.
By removing the existing porches and an existing garage, and obtaining a zoning variance, the footprint of the proposed addition was sized to accommodate these needs while carefully integrating the new with the old. At the first floor, the kitchen was extended into the addition such that the original galley kitchen became a prep area to support the new kitchen space. At the second floor, the smallest bedroom, which previously was barely large enough for a twin-sized bed, was increased in size to provide more than enough room for a double bed, while the existing bedroom space provides space for a dresser and shelves. The second bedroom became a dressing room for the main bedroom, accessed via a new spiral stair to the new space on the 3rd floor. A fourth bedroom was added at the basement level.
The design of the addition is sensitive to the existing home while taking on a modern aesthetic. The materials and detailing draw upon materials and details commonly found in the neighborhood, such as slate, clapboard siding and painted metal stairs/railings. At the stair hall and at the addition, skylights allow for light to activate interior spaces. Although the integrity of the existing interior spaces was retained, careful modification of existing elements, such as the width of an opening between rooms, help to accommodate modern life.
