Hampden Lane

Bethesda, MD, United States

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Other Projects by Robert M. Gurney, Architect

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Nevis Pool and Garden Pavilion

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Hampden Lane

Bethesda, MD, United States

Firm

Robert M. Gurney, Architect

Type

Residential › Private House

YEAR

2010

Edgemoore
is an affluent neighborhood in Bethesda, Maryland, a suburb bordering northwest
Washington, DC. Mature trees and gardens
line the streets of this neighborhood, within walking distance of downtown
Bethesda.
Too
often lately, many of the perfectly scaled houses inhabiting this neighborhood
are being torn down and replaced with Craftsman style houses on steroids and
pseudo colonials far too large for their lots. Most of these new houses are
built to the maximum size allowed by the zoning ordinances with little regard
for the scale of adjacent structures.
Sites are rendered treeless, leaving little or no green space. These houses seem egregious, insensitive and
irresponsible.
The
client for this project was a young, forward thinking entrepreneur with no
desire for a nostalgic or revivalist style house. He desired a house that was efficient with a
minimal footprint, leaving the majority of the lot unoccupied by building and hardscape. The close proximity to a more urban downtown
Bethesda warranted a house designed with closer ties to an urban area than to
the rural countryside that once informed the design of houses built in
Edgemoore.
After
much deliberation, it was decided to remove an existing, inefficient structure
and replace it with a new one. The new
house occupies one third less area than the original structure and is sited to
maximize green area on the property.
Designed as a cube, the new house is approximately 2200 square feet with
no unused or underutilized spaces. The
flat roof provides an additional 1100 square feet of outdoor living space with
views of treetops and the downtown Bethesda skyline.
Fenestration
in the ground faced block walls, composed of varying sized rectangular and
square openings, is arranged to optimize views to the green spaces while
minimizing views of adjacent houses in close proximity. A series of landscape walls orchestrate the
relationship between the street, required parking court and house. Interior spaces are open and light filled
with crisp detailing. Walnut flooring
provides a rich base for white walls and millwork, designed in juxtaposition to
the charcoal gray exterior walls.
This
house represents a deliberate departure in both the thought process and the
realization of current building trends in the neighborhood. Instead of building a large house with pretentious
ties to the rural past, this new house is smaller with a stronger relationship
to the modern, urban area that Bethesda has become. The house is intended to be
more site sensitive, environmentally conscious, and to provide comfortable,
efficient living spaces.