cute as a bug's ear

While others have been flexing their creativity dreaming up state of the art 1800 s.f. homes to compete on the Free Green site, I've been working on some solutions that may work here, a little closer to home. That contest is all about 1800 s.f. plans, most of them in a modern style, to best express the values preferred by those folks. Sustainability, Contemporary, Green, and state of the art. I doubt any of them will be built in our area. The economics just don't allow for an 1800 s.f. single family size. Lots are still too expensive. It's just too hard to get them to appraise. So, I'm working on what I do best, state of the art yesteryear. Appealing plans that speak to the heart as much as the mind. And I have no problem mining the past for solutions that speak to me. So here is James Gamble Rogers II own house, built around 1930 in Winter Park , Florida. It created quite a stir in its day, and was featured in 7 different magazines. I've adapted the elevation ideas of the original, a long low mass with a turret hinging a 45 degree angle in the garage piece. Added an extra gable for a protected entry, some stone, and totally re-did the plan for today's lifestyle. I didn't veer from the original intent however. The plan is just enough, but never too much. It comes in at 2600 s.f. on the main living levels- with another 900 s.f. available in a lower level if desired. The idea is to place it on one of the expensive lots in our area which formerly supported 800-900k product which now nobody can afford. Building a home like this to the proper specification, watching your costs like a hawk, should be able to let you bring this to market closer to 600k. It's cute as a bug's ear, there won't be anything else like it in the marketplace, and you may just grab yourself a sale. At a later point, I've added a couple photos here of the original house which is for sale. Here is the little tower and original one car garage. There is an entry which has been added to the base of the tower not present on the original. The other photo is the asymmetrical window in the gable piece which I use as the master suite, originally a kitchen, now a study.