The owners wanted a new infill green home on a very limited budget to house their young family. We created two intersecting volumes to address the modest, historical scaled street frontage and the solar orientation for energy conservation.

The home had to be “kid” friendly. Floors became opportunities. The open kitchen and mudroom floors are low cleft slate locally sourced – basically a horizontal chalkboard to play hopscotch, practice writing, and draw. A salvaged elementary school’s gym floor was repurposed throughout the rest of the house. The kids playroom, otherwise known as the “Dragon’s Den” is accessed through a kids size doorway (4’) at the junction of the two structural volumes. This creates an almost hidden room for the children’s imagination to flourish (and toys to be contained).

Programmatically, the spaces had to be multifunctional to keep the overall SF down. The central staircase (with a recycled milk bottle material for the guard rail) doubles as the library with books flowing from the roof down 3 floors to the basement. It also is the central chase for mechanical and electrical. Dedicated circulation space is almost non-existent, which again decreases the necessary SF needed. The plumbing is all stacked to decrease costs (and energy). Bedrooms are small and communal spaces are larger, which encourages family gatherings and entertainment but with the ability to retreat to private smaller spaces to regroup. The kitchen is wide open though relatively sparse on cabinetry. The storage needs were addressed with a large pantry using basic shelving instead.