Structural edits and repurposing of existing rooms at the main level updated a choppy Victorian floor plan, locating formal and private functions at the front of the house and casual spaces at the rear. “The heart of the house is now moved to the back,” says Linsteadt, who linked the kitchen, family room, and deck in a carefully composed sequence of everyday living spaces. “One of the bigger decisions we made was disconnecting the family room from the kitchen,” he says. But the resulting plan, with its choice of indoor and outdoor circulation paths, offers a richer experience than would a great-room layout.
Vertical Integration
The home’s historic designation meant that any exterior alterations would be subject to review board approval, and its layout — a single-level plan with a semi-finished basement below and an unfinished attic above — compounded the challenge.
Linsteadt connected the main level to the outdoors by filling an open corner of the footprint with a large, elevated deck. Gutting the lower level yielded space for a two-bedroom children’s suite and a guest quarters; a 1960s-era garage addition became a recreation room with direct access to a new backyard pool; and three discreet dormers opened up a gem-like space at the attic level. “We grabbed that for the master suite,” Linsteadt says.
