Legacy House: a New Design on the Coast of Maryland Is the Perfect Fit for a Growing Family

Heritage properties, those loved and handed down from generation to generation, are cherished not only for their architecture but also for shared family memories.

For one Maryland couple, though, such a property offered a prime opportunity to build a new home and establish their own legacy.

The couple in question were expecting their first child when they commissioned SPEIGHT COOK Studio Architects to build them a new house on the half acre of family land in Severna Park that was to be their forever home.

“They wanted a primary residence that was comfortable and livable, and most importantly, that would grow with their family,” says architect Stephanie Cook, a principal at SPEIGHT COOK.

DESIGN VISION

They had no qualms about replacing the waterfront house that existed because it had not stood the test of time and was not suitable for a modern lifestyle.

The program for the transitional shingle-style house, which faces the water on two sides, was quite ambitious considering that the flood plain was too high to include a basement and the fact that county regulations restricted the placement and size of the footprint.

The couple envisioned a 5,000-square-foot house with two stories. On the first floor, in addition to the main living areas, they wanted a flex space near the kitchen that would begin as a children’s playroom and eventually become a homework/study area, a den, or even a guest room as the kids grew.

On that same floor, they requested a games room large enough to accommodate a pool table, a foosball table, and a mini wet bar (an invisible lockable panel in the backsplash keeps the bottles out of sight and out of the way of children’s hands).

ROOM FOR TEENS

“They wanted a place where the kids could hang out that’s not the living room,” Cook says. “Because there’s no basement, they knew they needed to create a space for teenagers to go. We created that space over the garage, figuring that it also could be used as a guest bedroom if needed.”

It goes without saying that another prime objective was to exploit the views, without, however, turning the waterfront façade into a characterless wall of plate glass.

“That was tricky,” Cook says. “Because the existing footprint was oddly angled on the site and because of the constraints imposed by the county, we had to worry about the possibility that a neighbor would add a fence or a tree that would obstruct the view.”

The main living spaces—the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen—are aligned in sequence in a loft-like area facing the water.

MULTIPURPOSE SPACES

“This design gives everything you need—cooking, eating, and sitting—all with the coveted water view,” Cook says.

Different ceiling treatments in each of the three spaces give them distinct personalities and discrete boundaries that create a feeling of comfortable coziness.

“With this design, the rooms speak the same language but with different sentence structures,” Cook says.

The ceiling in the living room is coffered, and the ceiling in the kitchen has beams. The dining room, which is in the center, is framed simply by a border of molding that links it visually to the other two flanking rooms.

INDOOR OUTDOOR LIVING

Because this home is on the water, careful thought was given to indoor-outdoor spaces. There’s a terrace off the dining room, and the living room offers a porch whose screening runs inside the space, giving pride of place to its exterior beams and columns.

The games room, too, opens to a screened porch, emphasizing the feeling of expansiveness.

The interior spaces, decorated by the wife, are in neutral colors and convey chic, yet casual, serenity.

It’s the subtle architectural details that make the house shine. The door to the crawl space, which houses the utilities, is disguised as part of the wainscoting on the wall along the main staircase; the simple stone fireplace in the living room has a beamed mantel that hints of rustic domesticity; and the window frames, some white, some black, make the spaces distinct and defined.

All the details dovetail in the kitchen, which is appointed not only with two ovens but also with two parallel, marble-topped islands.

“This was the first time we had ever done two islands,” Cook says. “Their biggest benefit is that the first one, which has seating and is closest to the dining room, acts as a buffer, keeping guests away from the food-prep island.” The house, which was completed a couple of years ago, is the family’s best friend, catering to its every need with beauty, grace, and gratitude.

speightstudio.com