




Residence on Michigan Avenue
This family wanted a home that would visually conform to the more traditional residential aesthetic present in the Decatur neighborhood that they love, while also providing modern interior living spaces with high ceilings and an abundance of natural light. To achieve this goal, the portion of the home that is most visible from the street has more traditional punched opening casement windows with a larger percentage of brick cladding, and a typical sloped asphalt roof. But as the the house transitions from the more visible front to the more private back, the personality of the exterior transitions as well. The rear living spaces and master bedroom have floor to ceiling windows wherever possible to maximize views to the outdoors, and are topped with a flat roof that allows for an elevated outdoor living space,essentially doubling the usable “yard” area on this narrow in-town lot. The stair of the house was located centrally in the plan along an exterior wall in order to create a vertical light shaft connects all the way through the house from the roof deck down to the built-out basement level. The design resulting from the combination of these concepts is affectionately referred to by its occupants as “the mullet house.”