Two neighboring houses on Julius Street remain unchanged on the exterior (other than a new entry canopy and front door) but are merged on the interior creating generous space for living and art.

From the canopy which peeks out, a new stair of aluminum treads and gridded railings ascends creating a vertical gallery along the journey.  At the top, the two houses are fully blended and opened up. Expansive westerly views appear from the corner of windows. This merged floor is living, dining, kitchen and gallery. The thick yellow wall contains an elevator, fireplace and storage. A screened deck with eastern views connects the two houses at the rear.

On the floor below, the office (red) and the master suite (green) occupy the one house, the master bath both, other bedrooms (blue) are in the other house.

At the entry level a garden room opens to the rear yard from a sitting area. The other house is a separate apartment.

By leaving the exterior unchanged, entitlement was greatly simplified and the scale of the narrow street maintained as a collection of 25’ wide individual houses with the interior becoming an expansive, invisible from the street, new home.