Residential

Cape Elizabeth New Panoramas

The clients bought the house primarily for its proximity to wetlands and walking trails. But the modest, one-story house could only see the wetlands at the height of winter when the tall surrounding growth thinned out; and the birds, which the owner spent much time watching, were mostly gone.  So this renovation project had an overarching mission: bring the wetlands into the house’s purview and maximize natural light.  Quickly, even with a tight budget, it became clear that the only way to achieve these goals was to remove the roof and build a second story. The new upper level has expansive views and sundrenched spaces with an enormous deck overlooking the wetlands from all angles. The new master bedroom, sunny bathroom and study are the other second floor spaces, accessed via an open stair.  While the budget did not allow for a significant amount of renovation to existing 1st floor and basement spaces, new windows were strategically added to improve views and natural light, and the original, rather low 1st floor ceiling height was able to gain 8 inches via lifting the roof and adding the second story. 

Portland Downtown Residence

This urban renovation project added a new corten-steel clad addition in place of the original parking lot, shown at right. Corten steel was selected for its warmth and irregular surface characteristics, for the addition to be compatible with the 100 year old brick building to which it was joined. The new addition added guest bedrooms, a master suite and a new terrace, while an extensive interior renovation of the original space provided the owners with a professional-grade kitchen, two offices, a state-of-the art screening room, and an exercise room. A second outdoor space on top of the existing roof is accessed via the renovated areas. A 2007 renovation of the space, prior to the current owner’s purchase, was awarded LEED Platinum; while the current owners chose to not go through the certification process, the same standards were upheld for the new construction, resulting in a highly efficient and comfortable home. (All photos by Erin Little unless noted.)

New Portland Munjoy Hill Home

Occupying a formerly-vacant lot in the heart of densely-populated Munjoy Hill, this new house is all about light and views. Located on a relative high point on the Hill, the site provides drop-dead 180° west-facing views of downtown, Back Cove and inner Portland Harbor.  At the same time, the west side of the building is very private because of the steep grade and presence of neighboring commercial buildings well below the site. 
These fundamental site qualities made the planning process very clear:  all major spaces would be located on the west side of the building with dramatic expanses of glass, while the more private functions would occur on the east side of the building, facing the street or side-yards and with smaller openings.  
The exception is the central stair which is expressed on the east façade by floor-to ceiling windows.  The open steel and wood stair bisects the building, running from east to west, so that one is always moving toward views and light.  This vocabulary of steel and wood is expressed throughout the house with exposed steel structure, carefully crafted steel details and consistent wood flooring.  
The open kitchen-dining living spaces are located on the top (third) floor, with an expansive west-facing terrace accessed by two pairs of enormous steel and glass sliding doors.  The outside terrace is clearly an extension of the interior living space,  and almost doubles the overall amount of usable living space in good weather.  A free-standing custom fireplace and bookcase unit obscures storage spaces and powder room from the living room.  The second-floor master bedroom and master bathroom are similarly located on the west side with vast expanses of windows and a small terrace for private lounging, as well as a tub located for private sunset viewing.  Even the custom steel and glass shower is flooded with west light.  Other bedrooms and laundry occupy the north, south and east-facing sides of the second floor.   
The first floor is reserved for a rental unit with its own side entrance and west- facing living spaces and terrace, while the well-lit garage is used by the owner for a housing his antique car and workbench -- plus a serious collection of bicycles!   Even the basement is oriented towards the west light, with a work-out area and informal music room.   
The building was required to go through Portland’s design review process and was granted an unusual allowance for having two primary roof forms, based on the project’s commitment to sustainability.  The south-facing roof slope is optimized for solar panels, with no rooftop penetrations to diminish available panel area.  The other roof form is flat, as are the stepped overhanging roofs on the center of the east façade, and all were designed for vegetation (although this part of the project has not yet been installed).   Other sustainable aspects include the highly-insulated building envelope, triple-glazed windows and high-efficiency heat pumps for all heating and cooling.  Solar power produces approximately 10,200 kWh of clean renewable electricity annually, estimated to provide 75% of total electrical usage, and  is also connected to the two EV charging stations.  Not including use of an electric vehicle, the solar panels are estimated to offset approximately 10,727 lbs. of carbon pollution annually.

Portland Munjoy Hill Home

House on the water

This family home, built in multiple phases, is located on a spectacular coast-line site in "Downeast" Maine.  The home started with a simple 900 square foot building a few decades ago, establishing a summer foothold on the site for a newly-married couple.  Over the next 15+ years, this house grew with multiple additions to become a luxurious year-round home.  Each modern addition was appended to the original gabled structure in such a way as to complement, and not overwhelm the original building.  And always oriented to the extraordinary views to the water, the house has massive amounts of windows, giving it a light-filled ambiance all day, all year.  Many special features, such as a screened grill porch directly adjacent to the kitchen; a huge stone fireplace; a spa-like master bathroom with a glass-walled shower with views to the water; a professional-quality screening room; a custom 900-bottle wine-storage room; a natural cedar hot tub; and a spectacular rustic guest cottage, all contribute to making this a one-of-a-kind home.

House on the Maine coast

Cape Elizabeth Renovation

The renovation of this mid-1980's Cape Elizabeth home was for a family with three young children.  It focused on renovating three main areas: the kitchen, which was a dark and gloomy space with little natural light; the  attic space over the garage, also very dark and limited in use by the existing roof shape; and the most-used entrance of the house: a mudroom  connecting to the main house and providing access to the rooms over the garage. Other renovations included the master bathroom, and 1st floor powder room.   The newly-created space over the garage required a large gabled dormer on the driveway side, and long shed dormer on the backyard side of the former attic.   In addition to being a playroom and media room, the  new space also includes a large, sunny guest room, full bathroom. and special “perch” at the top of the stairs.  The new mudroom includes custom storage cabinets and a special place for the family dog!

Forest's Edge Guest Cottage

This small guest house is designed as a pine-wrapped jewel-box, with every carefully sanded surface providing a rustic but sensual touch.  The custom pendant uplight bathes the interior in a romantic glow and creates a lantern effect at the exterior.  Sited on the edge of the woods, the french doors are oriented toward the water beyond so the cottage feels both woods- and water-bound.     

Portland Renovation

Complete gut renovation of 1-1/2 story 1800's in-town house, with new bathrooms, kitchen, bedrooms, living spaces, finishes, systems.  The result is a clean and contemporary feel within a traditional building.    

Cape Elizabeth Wetlands House

Sited high above surrounding wetlands, the new owners of this house purchased it primarily because of the site.  Therefore, the primary goal of this renovation was to transform the gloomy, chopped-up interior to become bigger spaces that would - above all - provide views of the spectacular nature outside.  An awkward kitchen addition was replaced by a new addition for the kitchen, with high ceiling heights and panoramic views -- with a new roof deck above that feels like a private viewing platform.  A new entrance was provided from the driveway, with a complete reorganization of all of the first floor rooms, again deleting small awkward rooms and opening up all spaces with large windows focused on the magnificent views.   A new screen porch off the kitchen allows bug-free dining and nighttime enjoyment of the wetlands nearby.

New House with Studio

Commodious house designed for a tiny corner lot.  In spite of compact building footprint, house includes a large studio with separate entrance, generous living/dining/kitchen spaces, large terrace with views of the harbor, separate grill porch, three comfortable bedrooms,  2.5 bathrooms,  a 2-car garage, outdoor garden areas with an elegant side entrance. 

Antique House Renovation

This renovation of an almost-200-year-old house addressed both aesthetic upgrades as well as multiple interventions to stabilize the structure.  To maintaining the historic qualities  of the house, the street-facing facade was restored and a new addition was similar in appearance to the section of derelict building that had to be removed.  However, the owners wished to open up the house to the private rear yard and woods, and to that end, strategically-inserted modern components were added -- including a wall of industrial-style windows.  A few interior walls were removed to open up interior spaces to each other, thus allowing the house to feel more airy and be flooded with light.  New underground drainage systems and new stone retaining walls create a whole new usable exterior area, including a stone terrace and large outdoor shower.

Before & After

Renovation presents its own kind of challenges -- and rewards.  Finding the 'good bones' of an existing structure is always the starting point.  Upon these bones, the client’s program is developed (much like new construction).   Design considerations include making additions and/or new spaces appear to grow naturally from the existing building – or present a clear and clean departure from the existing.   As with new construction, priorities always include maximizing natural light, taking advantage of views, and knitting the structure into the landscape.   

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