Ocotea House Renovation

Text description provided by architect.

The existing house on Ocotea was a well-loved, 1960's, low-sloped ranch with a full basement visible from the left side.

Over the years, what was originally a clean image of mid-century residential architecture had fallen into disarray - the basement had been haphazardly chopped up to accommodate additional bedrooms, the main floor and public spaces had been reconfigured in an odd way, and a very poorly built sunroom had been added to the right side.

The major changes we designed for the house include a new carport on the right side that replaces the sunroom and extends the line of the roof, new front decks that introduce a floating, thin aesthetic to the formerly heavy front facade, a new kitchen and master suite, new stairs that connect the main spaces upstairs to a new, open family room in the basement, new utility systems, and completely new finishes inside and out.

The house now sits comfortably in its mid-century neighborhood, a stark alternative to the method of buy, bulldoze, buildout that currently plagues Raleigh's first-ring suburbs.