Title: Parrish Vila Parrish Residence
Location of Proejct: Raleigh, NC
Project Completion Date: January 2021
Firm Name: The Raleigh Architecture Co

Short Description: The Parrish Villa-Parrish Residence was a renovation of an existing 1960s house in Raleigh's Forest Park Neighborhood. The original house presented challenges of poorly organized spaces, dark interiors, and a lack of connection to the sidewalk. The primary design solution connects all public areas with a reordered plan and double height space, introducing light, volume, and views through additional glazing and skylights.
For cost reasons and site limitations, the project worked mostly within the existing building shell. A continuous ribbon dormer peels away from the roof, providing ambient northern light and new take on the traditional dormers that were removed.

Architect's Statement: This house is located in Raleigh's Forest Park neighborhood, a 1910's area highly desirable for its dense fabric, established trees, and stock of old houses. The project homeowners lived at this property for approximately ten years before undertaking the renovation. Motivated by a desire to stay in the area and take advantage of an early investment, they opted to undergo a major renovation and make the most of the existing building shell.

Originally built in 1969, this house presented many challenges to overcome in accommodating the owner's needs. The exterior was disconnected from the street and the front door rarely used. The interior was comprised of awkward, dark, separated spaces. The layout offered little to connect to street life and outdoor spaces. The owners cited the lack of "trick-or-treaters" as a design problem to solve.

Working from the outside, the design solution involved several major tactics. The original front steps were removed and replaced with a larger front porch. The porch extends outward providing area for sitting, furniture, and wide steps for welcoming visitors. Planters are integrated into the porch structure and care taken to step down it's massing - overall offering a less imposing, more welcoming pedestrian entrance to the house despite the 13' grade change from sidewalk to finished floor.

The existing dormers likewise did little to connect the original house to its context. Small and dark, these dormers created awkward interior spaces and added little in terms of natural light. These were removed and replaced with a continuous ribbon dormer window. Thematically, the new dormer peels the original roof up in a single continuous gesture, bringing diffuse northern light inside and creating enjoyable space and volume for the building's occupants. The existing brick structure was preserved in shell form and punched with windows in a composition congruous with the revised floor plan.

Moving inside, the original floor plan was generally cluttered and lacking in connection. On the first floor, the design solution reordered the main kitchen, living, dining, and porch spaces into a single area. Several flitch beams were installed to achieve the larger spaces while working within the existing wood framing. A central double height space connects the first and second floor and brings abundant natural light in from the ribbon dormer window. An existing screen porch, formerly difficult to access, was reconnected to the main area via an folding accordion door. The result is a cohesive, open space extending from back to front of the house, opening all the way to the screen porch.

The second floor was also reordered. Utility spaces such as bathrooms and closets were pushed to the perimeter to open up the rear facade and provide connection to the new double height spaces. The Lounge, an important secondary living area for the owners' children, was created at the top of the stairs.

The Parrish Vila Parrish Residence works within the confines of a difficult shell and tight property to take best advantage of an awkward old house. Introducing basic elements like connection, volume, and light has improved the living patterns of the owners and allowed for better participation in their neighborhood.