East Market Street – Historical Renovation of Grand Victorian Home
renovations and remodels
June 3 2017Used as an office building for decades, this stately Victorian home in the center of Rhinebeck had lost almost all of its historic charm. Original siding was covered over with vinyl. A cheap asphalt roof was decaying in place. Windows were hidden behind aluminum storms. What made the house even worse was a massive 1,500 square foot addition built in the 1980s that made the already big house a monstrosity. On the inside, there were dropped ceilings, wall-to-wall carpeting and chopped-up rooms with cheap new doors and trim.
The plan was simply to historically preserve those parts of the building worth preserving. On the exterior of the building, this was done by exposing original siding, adding a cedar and copper roof and changing out misshapen windows with historically appropriate modern Marvin replicas in original window openings (discovered during demolition). Windows were ordered without hardware so the Victorian brass latches could be reused. On the interior, walls were removed to create an open floor plan while original floors, oak details and cast iron radiators were restored. The new addition was partially demolished – with the effect of shrinking the house and lopping off an 800 square foot building from the house entirely. This newly created building now serves as a garage/artist’s studio and was detailed to resemble a historic carriage house. A glass garage door and polished concrete floors add an unexpected modern touch.
Design: The Art of Building
Build: The Art of Building
Build: The Art of Building