Builder- March 2009 - (Page 76) BE FOR E LIGHTEN UP: The cypress siding and metal roof were durable, but brown just wasn’t its color. Changing the hue and reproportioning the windows and porches of this Florida crackerstyle home made it fit to sell. T 76 ■ his spec home in Rosemary Beach, Fla., was built well before the housing bust, and yet it sat on the market for two years with nary a nibble. Its major downfall was that the original builder had neglected to include a bathroom on the second floor— forcing anyone in the kitchen, dining room, or living room to go up or down a fl ight of stairs when nature called. The house had other deficits, too, including a drab brown exterior (not so good for curb appeal), cramped porches, and puny windows with high sills that failed to take advantage of the coastal view. And the interior fi nishes were so dowdy they seemed to predate the house itself. Architect Darrell Russell and builder GIVE AND TAKE John LaPlante saw potential, however, in this misfit, especially considering its scale and massing were already compliant with the town’s stringent TND guidelines. So they bought the place as a private joint venture and set about making it lighter and airier—all within the confi nes of its existing footprint. One of the first things to go was a claustrophobic interior staircase, which they opened up (with the addition of structural beams) to become part of the living room. Small windows on the ground floor were replaced with full-length glass doors to maximize views, and the existing antique pine floors were stained a richer, darker brown, allowing the white millwork and window casements to really pop. What makes this rehab particularly notable, though, is its deft redistribution of indoor/outdoor relationships. By enclosing a corner screened porch on the second floor, for example, Russell was able to bump the kitchen’s position slightly south P R O J E C T: Rosemary Avenue Cottage L O C AT I O N : Rosemary Beach, Fla. S I Z E : 2,600 square feet L O T S I Z E : 5,445 square feet A R C H I T E C T/ D E V E L O P E R : Darrell Russell, Photos: Jack Gardner Rosemary Beach C O N S T R U C T I O N M A N A G E R / D E V E L O P E R : John LaPlante, Rosemary Beach I N T E R I O R D E S I G N E R : Kay Douglass, South of Market, Atlanta B U I LD E R m a rc h 2 0 0 9 W W W.BUILDERONLINE.COM http://WWW.BUILDERONLINE.COM
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