Sensitive Addition to Historic House

Firm: Stuart Cohen & Julie Hacker Architects LLC

Location: Glencoe

General Contractor: Sturm Builders Inc.

The project consists of a new kitchen and breakfast area; a new mudroom with an entrance from both the existing garage and from the outside; and miscellaneous remodeling on the first floor including the creation of a library. The house is sited on the edge of a ravine with the original formal entryway facing the ravine. The driveway approaches from the side and arrived at the back of the house. The existing back door to the kitchen, with its covered porch, was always mistaken for the front door. The new addition reverses the front-back orientation of the house so that one now enters under the new copper covered entry on what was once the back of the house. The kitchen/breakfast room now faces the back of the house, which was the front of the house, with a patio and views to the ravine.