Northshore Home magazine highlights the best in architectural design, new construction and renovations, interiors, and landscape design.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1463863
54 SPRING 2022 inspire The historic Myles Standish Hotel has been reimagined to fit the lifestyle of today's modern family. The Duxbury, Massachusetts, waterfront estate, which was built in 1871, was literally split in two after being heavily damaged by fire in 1908. Although the north wing remained in its original location, the south wing was sold and moved off site. Each was used as a private residence. In 2016, new owners bought the north wing and commissioned Boston-based Patrick Ahearn Architect to transform it into a prominent bayfront residence with spaces built to maximize indoor and outdoor enjoyment. The renovation left no room untouched, yet the sensitivity of the new architecture makes visitors wonder what was original and what was built anew. The alterations start with a new arrival sequence that features a drive that debouches at a gracious front door. Placed to the side to preserve views of the front façade, a motor court sits in front of a new carriage house that reads as a boat house that was connected to the main structure over time. In the rear, careful placement of hardscape allows for an exterior oasis and the preservation of an expansive green lawn and views out to the water. The once half-a-hotel has been redeveloped as a complete architectural thought. A new definitive front entry was established that can be seen from the street. In addition, the covered porch running the length of the front of the house was preserved. Taking cues from the mass and scale of the original hotel, new additions, including the carriage house and connector gallery, PAT R I C K A H E A R N A R C H I T E C T Historic Myles Standish Hotel R E S I D E N T I A L ( R E STO R AT I O N , R E N OVAT I O N , O R A D D I T I O N ) were inserted. What was kept is perhaps as important as what was revised. In the front and rear, covered porch concepts were maintained and repeated, and details like original dormer shapes on the third floor were preserved to maintain the property's authenticity. Shutters were added throughout to imbue the residence with coastal New England character. A rhythm of windows and shutters on the second floor establishes exterior character while allowing interior spaces exceptional views out to the water. Those views can now also be appreciated on the third floor, thanks to a new Nantucket dormer. On the side of the property, two sets of French doors on the glass- encased connector gallery allow for movement and views directly from the front motor court through to the rear exterior hardscape entertainment space. A pool cabana is neatly tucked against the carriage house, inviting traffic flow with a set of French doors. Inside, floor plans were opened up and modified. To rectify the wrongs of multiple renovations that had been done over the years, Mellowes & Paladino Architects, based in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, gutted this 6,000-square-foot residence to create a cohesive design plan that functions well in the 21st century. The rooms of the residence, which is in Louisburg Square on Boston's Beacon Hill, were organized around a new formal sweeping staircase. Custom trims, mouldings, casings, paneling, and mantels were added with an eye toward elevating the home to its once elegant status. The first floor houses a dining room that faces the square, and a new kitchen with custom cabinetry opens to an informal seating area that, in turn, looks out into the rear garden. On the second floor, a piano alcove, large living room and mahogany-paneled library represent the public spaces. A two-story L-shaped wing extends into the garden and houses a morning room and utility spaces on the first floor and a catering kitchen and study on the second. The third floor of the townhouse contains the primary bedroom suite, and the fourth and fifth floors have additional TO W N H O U S E A N D A PA RTM E N T S M E L L O W E S & PA L A D I N O A R C H I T E C T S Louisburg Square Townhouse bedrooms and an entertainment room. A spiral staircase ascends to a mechanized roof hatch that opens to a roof deck. The formal façade facing Louisburg Square was outfitted with new custom windows that meet the exacting specifications for residences on the hill. At the rear, a steel window system brings abundant light into the two main public levels and also provides a strong visual anchor for the townhouse as viewed from the redesigned rear terrace and garden. northshoremag.com/nshorehome/ PHOTOGRAPHY BY: TRENT BELL PHOTOGRAPHY (BOTTOM); BY TAYLOR AH EARN (TOP)