This remarkable home is situated on a former sheep pasture that included an orchard, towering evergreens, and a home once owned by the daughter of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. The client shared our spirit of adventure and a passion for art and landscape.
Rather than making a statement on the land, the resulting design is folded into it, sheltered by extensive green roofs, and punctuated by light-filled courtyards. Larger program elements like a lap pool are set below the original pasture level and only a small portion of the home is visible from the air. The home’s environmental impact is moderated by the use of rooftop solar, ground source heat, and the extensive use of green roofs that channel water to a series of water features and bioretention planters.
Salvaged elements include a multi-hinged front door fabricated from a decommissioned airplane wing, a doorbell fashioned from a scuba tank, and a full reconstruction of the historic fireplace featured in local articles about President Roosevelt’s visits. The house is full of surprises - from an internal slide to a large wall panel that swings open to access a “wine tunnel” leading to another secret door and cliffside hideaway.
DeForest Architects Team | John DeForest, Melissa Nordquist, Steve Click, Geoff Briggs
Contractor | Lockhart Suver
Interiors | NB Design Group, Lucas Interior
Landscape | Charles Anderson Landscape Architecture
Structural | Swenson Say Faget
Photography | Benjamin Benschneider
Tucked below the main house along a stream, the convergence of multiple environmentally sensitive areas required a light touch and a 32’ cantilever for the main living space.
