The Carriage House

How do you design a Victorian carriage house in a zoning district that doesn’t allow them? And by the way, it should accommodate cars, bikes, banquets, poker, exercise, tap dancing, a bar, bathroom, reading nook, storage, and a deck. Simple, you excavate and regrade the yard to allow a two story structure, within zoning laws, and create multi-use spaces on each floor.

Archival sleuthing uncovered photos of the former carriage house introduced the idea of the hay loft, which serves as a reading nook. The building is entirely hand framed and finished using turn-of-the-century framing methods. Flooring, treads, and countertops are recycled from buildings of the same era. The stair, storage, bathroom, and banquet tables are built in-to the peripheries, keeping the spaces as open and flexible as possible.

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