NEWBURYPORT RESIDENCE
Massachusetts

We designed and oversaw construction of extensive renovations and additions to an 1803 Federal-style house on a main street in the heart of Newburyport. An 1890 addition blocked the house from the through-block terraced garden. The owners wanted to return the property to a single-family house and reconnect it to the garden.

The blank, north facing rear wall is reconfigured with two glazed additions. A cook's kitchen and eating area are placed at the back of the house, which overlooks the garden through a large bay window. A series of decks step down to a terrace on axis with the garden's gravel path. A glazed vestibule connects the rear hall to the kitchen and to the garden.

The large bay window in the kitchen is built with custom lift-and-slide, mahogany windows and transoms. Stainless steel columns placed inboard allow the window unit to float without additional structural support. The vestibule serves as the family mudroom and is detailed as a garden room with a radiant, mosaic stone and tile floor, and built-in mahogany bench.

Both elements have copper roofs and window sills and louvered cedar wall cladding and screening below the windows and decks.

The kitchen has milk painted and quarter-sawn oak cabinets with soapstone countertops and sink. A cobalt blue range is flanked by stainless steel counters for fish cleaning. There is also a baking area with butcher block counters. The large island allows guests to participate in the preparation of meals and includes storage on the backside for kids' projects. A large trestle table sits in the bay window overlooking the garden.

The ipe wood deck and stairs with stainless steel and wood railings lead to the raised bluestone terrace, which provides a sitting area overlooking the garden. Granite steps connect to the garden's existing gravel paths and extensive perennial beds. The decks are configured to minimize the removal of mature rhododendrons around the back of the house.

The carriage house has since been renovated into a meeting space for the owner's business, culminating a series of interventions that have breathed new life into a grand North Shore house and garden.