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Builders Outreach Foundation Features a Dream remodel project in the 2006 Parade of Homes remodelors ShowcaseSM
10/6/2006
During each of the Parade of HomesSM tours, the public has an opportunity to help low-income families achieve the dream of owning their own home when they visit the Builders Outreach Foundation Dream Homes. That includes one very special Dream Remodeling Project featured during the 2006 Parade of Homes Remodelors ShowcaseSM.
All visitors to this fabulous Dream Remodeling Project are asked to make a tax-deductible $5.00 donation at the door. All proceeds will be used by the Builders Outreach Foundation, the charitable arm of the Builders Association of the Twin Cities, to help continue their work building homes for families that otherwise couldn’t afford one, mostly in the Frogtown area of St. Paul. All other remodeling projects are open for viewing at no cost.
Entry #63
EnterSpace Professional Design & Quality Construction
4440 Edmund Boulevard, Minneapolis
An Entire Makeover in the Arts & Crafts Style
Project Overview
This 1,400 square foot 1950's Rambler was converted to a 3,000 square foot interpretive version of an Arts & Crafts home. Rather than focusing on expanding a large amount of new floor space, the motivation was to design comfortable and thoughtful spaces.
The Site
The highlight of the home then, and now, is its unique city lot with a front view of the Mississippi river and the back wooded yard. The focus of the new floor plan was to provide a house that was a connection between the two views.
Changing the contour of the land allowed for full-size windows, including a view to the river. This required raising the foundation two feet, which also increased the livable space in the lower level. The lower level, previously a wet low-ceiling space, was upgraded to match the quality of the first floor.
A challenge with this remodel was that the site is located on a clay creek bed and water with continuous flow. A rain garden directs the additional water flow and helps the yard absorb the runoff from the hard surfaces and a lot with impervious soil. Hidden underneath the rain garden's dry creek bed is an 800 cubic foot gravel basin that serves as a shock absorber for the runoff.
Architectural / Interior
The character of the house is to combine traditional elements found in the surrounding Arts & Crafts homes. Although fully renovated and restructured, the scale of the house keeps the small-bones quality of an older home. The front entry was designed to deliver guests directly into the heart of the house, the family room/kitchen.
The dining room projects a traditional intimate room, although it is an extension of the kitchen/family room. The combination of a vaulted beam ceiling and cabinets help to shield and define the space.
The family room with its high ceiling, and a wall of light through the French doors and transoms is a comfortable and gracious space. The room is anchored by a custom slate tiled fireplace, originally a 1950's barbeque located on the back side of the chimney. Design innovation played a role in solving the problem and saving money. The original barbeque opening was a challenge, being two feet wide and three feet high and positioned to one side of the chimney. The design team opted not to remove the entire chimney and rebuild, which would cost the homeowner several thousand dollars. Instead, EnterSpace designed with the collaboration of Heinz Brummel, jeweler, Bob Lillard, furniture maker, and Wayne Hendrickson, artist. The stylized graphics and gilding now reflect the homeowner's love of sunflowers.
The family room flows through a pair of internal French doors into the library. With a wood ceiling nearly 18 inches lower than the family room, the library is cozy. Slightly more formal and separated from the house with doors, it offers a quiet space. Four sets of French doors leading onto the front terrace have concealed screens hidden by custom millwork. With the doors open, the library becomes an elegant porch.
Handcrafted architectural railings lead to the newly developed lower level. The lower level features a compartmentalized bathroom with future sauna, two bedrooms, an office, and central recreation and entertainment area. The new seating area created in the southeast corner offers views across the rain garden to the river parkway.
What was achieved is a modern house with the sensitivity to scale and architectural design that are found in older homes. The result is a home with space and details that offer comfort and a sense of place.
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