Thomas Wirth Associates

Close family relatives desired to build a new home on the site of a grandparent and decided to raise the old house above grade but preserve the first floor and spaces below for repurposed uses.  We worked with the architect to bring their vision to reality bridging the new house over a ravine to the old house foundation and creating a garden in its footprint.  The site has dramatic views to a large pond and mature canopy of deciduous and coniferous specimen trees that were cared for by arborists for many years.  The grandmother was one of the founders of the New England Wildflower Society so the site was full of native plantings en masse in all its multiple layers. We developed a site plan with two separate entries - to the formal entry of the new house, and to the service entry that used the same driveway footprint of the original house.  Lush native plantings were used throughout the gardens with pathways to enjoy seasonally.  The terrace from the old house was incorporated into the new garden setting.  The new home meets all the family’s needs and respectfully incorporated the memories and the substance of the grandmother’s extraordinary site.