NH's best residential designs
The New Hampshire chapter of the American Institute of Architects chooses its best residential designs in January.
The New Hampshire chapter of the American Institute of Architects’ (AIANH) Excellence in Architecture Design Awards Program is now in its thirtieth year of giving recognition to outstanding architecture. The awards program is juried by out-of-state architects who select the winning projects based on overall design excellence, including aesthetics, clarity, creativity, functionality, sustainability, building performance and appropriateness with regard to the client’s vision. AIANH member architects are eligible to submit projects anywhere in the world, while out-of-state AIA member architects can submit projects that are located in New Hampshire.
This year, thirteen projects were submitted in the residential category, along with twenty submissions for commercial, educational and municipal projects.
The jurors for the 2014 program were Brad Hastings, AIA, vice president, Becker Morgan Group Inc. in Salisbury, Maryland; Steven Kahle, AIA, principal, SKA Studio (Steven Kahle Architects), Annapolis, Maryland; and Marta Hansen, AIA, principal, Hansen Architects, Annapolis.
Following is an overview of the residential submissions with descriptions provided by the architects.
Winners will be announced at the AIANH Awards Banquet on January 10 at the LaBelle Winery in Amherst. The results will be published in the March issue of New Hampshire Home, and, when possible, winning projects will be featured in upcoming issues. Award winners will also be posted on the AIANH website, aianh.org, and featured in the annual Awards Book, published by AIANH.
In the meantime, the submissions are posted online at www.aianh.org and viewers can cast a ballot as part of the People’s Choice award program. After the banquet, all submissions will be part of a statewide traveling exhibition.
Private Residence, Rural New Hampshire
Photos by John W. Hession
Dennis Mires, PA, The Architects in Manchester
625-4548
www.thearchitects.net
Architect: Dennis Mires, AIA, LEED AP, principal in charge; David Sherborne, project manager
Construction Manager: North Branch Construction, Inc. in Concord
This contemporary take on the traditional organizing concept of a main house and connector barn commands the hill on this large parcel. The stone “cube” and floating roof of the main house minimize the footprint to preserve the existing landscape and maximize the long views. The shape, color and orientation of the subordinate “barn” recall New England barns but at an inverted scale.
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Carriage House in Portsmouth
Photo by Greg West
AdaptDESIGN in Portsmouth 205-2155
www.adaptdesignonline.com
Architect: Paul Fowler, AIA
Contractor: Whitcher Builders in Strafford
The carriage house—part of a complex of Beaux Arts and Italianate-style buildings designed by architect Gridley James Fox Bryant between 1864 and 1865 for Captain William Parrot—contains two apartments. The clients wanted to update the building’s interior, while keeping its historic exterior. The design challenge was completely contained within the shell.
The final product has an exterior envelope that is much more energy efficient as well as a contemporary/open interior. The spaces are filled with natural light and were designed to utilize natural ventilation for passive cooling.
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Straws Point Residence in Rye
Photos by Eric Roth
CJ Architects in Portsmouth 431-2808
www.cjarchitects.net
Architect: Carla J. Goodknight, AIA, principal
General Contractor: Chinburg Properties in Newmarket
Landscape Architect: Terra Firma Landscape Architecture in Kittery, Maine
The restoration of this vintage waterfront home preserves the integrity of the original cottage while converting the interior into an open-concept space with a clean-line design in demand by current lifestyles. The contemporary pool house complements the main house and reinvents the original style.
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Exeter Village Renovation in Exeter
TMS Architects in Portsmouth
436-4274
www.tmsarchitects.com
Architects: William Soupcoff, AIA, principal architect; Timothy Giguere, AIA, project manager
General Contractor: K & S Contracting in North Hampton
Interior Designer: Cebula Design in Newburyport, Massachusetts
Located within walking distance of historic downtown Exeter, this residence was originally constructed in 1885. The exterior detailing was refurbished, the porch railing was replaced to fit within the context of the original design, and windows were added for increased light. Renewable materials—such as oak and mahogany—add to the casual comfort of the spaces, and a solar, domestic hot-water system and other sustainable technologies help offset energy costs. An awkward side entry was reconfigured to create space for a mudroom and bath, and the kitchen was redesigned for comfort and efficiency.
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Ash Street Split in Portsmouth
Photos by David Maurand
McHenry Architecture PLLC in Portsmouth
430-0274
www.mchenryarchitecture.com
Architect: Steven McHenry, AIA, principal
Contractor: Pidela Corp. in Goffstown
The Ash Street Split project is a house renovation located in a dense residential neighborhood near the downtown. The existing house was a dated 1962 split-level ranch that has now undergone a complete transformation to a modern, livable residence for a growing family. The new switchback roof expresses the overlapping levels while creating clerestory windows for increased daylighting and ventilation. The elevated addition can serve as a carport and a covered patio space that connects to the yard.
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Light House Cove Cottage in Wolfeboro
TMS Architects in Portsmouth
436-4274
www.tmsarchitects.com
Architects: William Soupcoff, AIA, principal architect; Retta Fitch, project manager
General Contractor: Lovering Construction in Wolfeboro
Interior Designer: Inspired Interiors in Naples, Florida
This cottage home is perched on the edge of Lake Winnipesaukee and located within walking distance of downtown Wolfeboro. The generous use of windows and exterior decks allows the homeowners to access the small beach, fire pit and dock on the water’s edge. The New Hampshire fieldstone foundation is carried into the interior fireplace in the great room, which extends vertically through the center of the home, capturing sunlight from clerestory windows. The exterior character of the house is meticulously detailed using wood columns, pilasters, brackets, wood shutters, deep fascias, and projected rake and roof moldings.
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Whippoorwill Farm in Marlborough
Photos by Clive Russ
Sheldon Pennoyer Architects in Concord
856-8994
www.spennoyerarchitects.com
Design Team: Sheldon Pennoyer, AIA, LEED AP; David O’Neil, AIA; Renee Fair, LEED AP
Landscape Architect: Brown Sardina Strata Design in Boston
Contractor: Groesbeck Construction in Peterborough
This house was designed as an energy-efficient, single-family home that would be a part of a family farm compound. It is a traditional New England farmhouse on the exterior with a modern plan and clean, simple detailing on the interior.
The house plan was designed to allow for informal living, and to accommodate a large home office on the second floor and a weaving studio on the first floor. To control the size of the building, all the bedrooms were designed to be small but functional. A screen porch allows views of the mountains to the south and sunsets to the west, while remaining out of view during winter.
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Norway Point in Moultonborough
Photo by Joseph St. Pierre
Samyn-D’Elia Architects, P.A., in Ashland
968-7133
www.sdarchitects.com
Architect: Ward D’Elia, AIA
Contractor: Cerutti Construction in Meredith
In order to accommodate the required shoreline setbacks and address the clients’ desire to maximize its Lake Winnipesaukee views, a bowed elevation—providing 120-degree views of the lake—was adopted for the main living area and master bedroom. Doors that open in the front and rear of the stone-floored garage allow this space to serve as a covered sitting porch and be a large “window” to the lake beyond.
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Kjellman Residence in Sunapee
Photos by Duene Cowan
Cowan Goudreau Architects in Concord
226-3990
www.cgarchs.com
Architect: Duene Cowan
Contractor: Nehemiah Builders in Newbury
This lakeside house was rotated to take advantage of the views, and sited lower on the hill to allow for the garage and a turnabout to be located between the house and the street. The circular driveway allows additional parking, circulation and the opportunity to provide landscaping in the middle, which also diffuses the sightline form the street. The lakeside screen porch has a connection from the living room and a double-sided fireplace, and provides treehouse-like views of Lake Sunapee. Design elements include wood shingles, a native stone rubble base, a native stone fireplace, hardwood floors, granite countertops and a custom French door at the entryway.
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Meredith Bay Townhomes in Laconia
Photos by Blind Dog Photo Associates
CJ Architects in Portsmouth
431-2808
www.cjarchitects.net
Architect: Carla J. Goodknight, AIA, principal
General Contractor: Northwest Communities in Acton, Massachusetts
Built on a hillside cascading down to the banks of Lake Winnipesaukee, the living spaces of these four townhome units are designed to emulate the landscape. Cathedral ceilings, open stairways, as well as lakeside decks and balconies for each floor capture the essence of a custom waterfront home in a townhouse model.
Stone veneer detailing as well as heavy timber post and beam porches combine to create a classic New England–vacation style on the exterior.
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Freese Residence in Concord
Photos by Stefanie Martin
Cowan Goudreau Architects in Concord
226-3990
www.cgarchs.com
Architect: Duene Cowan
General Contractor: George Sharpe in Contoocook
The home was designed for a young, professional family with four children. With more than four thousand square feet of living space on the upper levels, there was a desire to break down the home’s massing as seen from the street as well as to provide an area of privacy on the home’s south side, which is open to the views.
The main level is open-concept, with the entry, dining room, kitchen, living room and music room all rotating about a central fireplace chimney mass. The second floor includes four children’s bedrooms, two bathrooms, a sitting room and an overlook to the first-floor living room.
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Castle Rock Cottage
Photos by John W. Hession
Christopher P. Williams Architects in Meredith
279-6513
www.cpwarchitects.com
Architect: Chris Williams, AIA, principal architect; Penelope Marvel, project architect
General Contractor: Flanders Enterprises in Meredith
Landscape Designer: Design Plus Landscape in Plymouth
This five-bedroom home replaced an old family “camp” on a lakefront site. The original camp, although it had served the family well, was mold-infested, was structurally inadequate and lacked the open spaces this growing family craved. The clients requested that a new, energy-efficient LEED home be built in place of the camp house—a home that would function as the gathering place for the multi-generational family now and in the future.
This home achieved a LEED Platinum rating through material efficiency; high-energy performance; lower water usage; recycled, local and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) products; and low/no irrigation landscaping that will be left to naturalize.
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Chicken Coup in Dublin
Photography by Thayer Design
Daniel V. Scully/Architects in Keene
357-4544
scully-architects.com
Design Team: Daniel V. Scully, AIA, principal; several chickens; and contractor
Richard Pisciotta of Dublin
This lovely home for chickens allows them to roam outside during the day and stroll up a gangplank ramp to roost in the evening, at which time a side gate in the floor gets closed to keep out intruders. The birds live on the second floor, and use another ramp to go up to an open-air penthouse-sleeping porch. There are four nesting boxes, like saddlebags on the side, which open from the outside. The narrow design never requires human entry to “foil” their domain. The trailer foundation allows portability around the yard.
The design responds to an adjacent galvanized, corrugated arch “Quonset Hut” garage. Sustainability features include organically grown feed, self-perpetuating; the coop can be oriented for passive solar input in the winter; there is no mechanical system; there is a solar-powered electric fence.
