The scope and complexity of restoring and rebuilding this 1853 Victorian required reimagining, innovation and exceptional craftsmanship — the kind of skills our team has been mastering for decades. Taking a full two years to complete, we successfully and seamlessly merged this home’s historic character, with a large modern addition, perfectly meeting the needs of a family living in 2026.

We began by dividing the house into eight sections, lifting and supporting each separately, to raise the home by one inch, enabling us to prep and pour cement to create the home’s first foundation, since it was not originally built with one in place. Tackling a request from the client to connect the carriage house to the main house, was an interesting challenge, since the 150-foot difference between the two was made of solid ledge. This required not only breaking through this ledge, but digging 21 feet down, through it, enabling us to connect the two homes, and to build a modern and expansive 8,000 square-foot underground addition. This hidden gem offers amenities galore, including a basketball court, home theatre, game room, billiards room and reading nook, new mechanical systems, as well as many distinctive design elements.

Because an underground living space comes with its own set of requirements, we leaned into our decades of experience to expertly address them prior to the build. With our expertise in environmental issues, we addressed the possible effects of a leak, or flooding, by installing an underground tank 26 feet below the addition to ensure unwanted water would have a proper place to go. While a space below ground doesn’t enjoy the benefit of windows, making it quite dark, we solved this issue with the installation of two massive sky lights, allowing an abundance of natural light to stream in. And above ground, to keep this enormous new below ground space discreet, and the back of the home an attractive focal point, we engineered something complex and truly unique, we believe is a “first” in a home setting — a “living roof.” Instead of a standard, made of slate or shingle, we designed this living roof to boast charming cobblestone walkways, oversized planters, trees and even an underground snow melt system. Built to specifications that can hold the weight of a fire truck, in case of emergency, this addition is as spectacular an undertaking inside as it is outside.

In the main house, we focused on maintaining this home’s history, while updating it for modern living. Turning to our Mill and restoration experts, we achieved this by replicating numerous original details throughout the home, such as custom windows made to match the originals, integrating a four-story elevator into an existing chimney, and fully refurbishing the library, to restore it to its former elegance, while enhancing its functionality. The structural engineer who worked as part of our team, still finds it hard to believe we were able to take on the challenges of this complex project, and deliver a home that exceeds expectations, while seamlessly blending the past with the present, and giving this family a stylish space where they can spend meaningful time together and with friends and family for decades to come.