Residential  ·  Traditional

The Center Avenue House

Lake Bluff, Illinois. A house from around 1902 on a prominent corner, extended without letting the additions announce themselves.

The front of a white clapboard house behind a deep porch with turned balusters, reached by a broad flight of steps through mature planting.
Area
≈ 4,660 sq ft
Accommodation
5 bed, 4½ bath
Scope
Addition & Restoration
Built
c. 1902
The project

Originally constructed circa 1902 on Center Avenue in Lake Bluff, this historic residence was expanded to accommodate a new living room, kitchen, pantry, family room, and mudroom/laundry area.

The additions were carefully designed to integrate seamlessly with the original architecture while introducing the conveniences of contemporary living.

The front porch was extended around the corner of the house to connect with the new family room and strengthen the home's relationship to its prominent location at Center and Evanston Avenues.

First Floor

Where the addition
picks up

First floor plan: study, living room, foyer and dining in the original house, with kitchen, breakfast, family room, pantry, mudroom and garage added behind, and porch decking wrapping the south and east sides.
First floor as built

The original rooms (study, living, foyer, dining) hold the street front. Kitchen, breakfast, family room, pantry and mudroom run back from them toward the garage, so the new work sits behind the historic elevation rather than beside it. Porch decking wraps from the front around to the family room.