Renda Residence

Respecting the Colonial …

Center-Hall Colonials, by nature, don't lend themselves well to large multi-story additions. A Colonial's appeal is generally in its straight forward simplicity and symmetry. Side wings and appendages fit well, and even enhance the composition, when they are clearly subordinate in size and height.

In this particular project the existing side wing, from which the new 2nd floor addition would be built, had a particularly large footprint. As seen from the front, a deliberate effort was taken to scale-down the new addition. The front addition roofline was lowered to re-establish the main house and roof as the dominate mass. In addition, elements like the front garden room porch, cantilevering the gable end, and truncating the roof gable with a Jerkin hip, all act in concert to scale the addition down and allow the original main house to remain the dominate form.