Bob Doris and Mary Sauer Residence, Belvedere
Belvedere's architectural history began in the late 1800's and from this beginning the steep terrain dictated the vertical design of the houses. Lots went from road to road. Early practitioners of the First Bay Tradition were Willis Polk, Bernard Maybeck, and Ernest Coxhead, but the man responsible for many of Belvedere's examples was Albert Farr. He combined various elements of entry, window and dormer design to differentiate each residence. Farr designed several modest revival style homes on Madrona Avenue in the 1920's and early 1930's.
The design team was challenged to maintain as much of the original historic home as possible, to reflect its character and yet to increase the size of the home by almost fifty percent. A total of fourteen hundred square feet have been carefully added to the three levels of the home. The storage/basement has now been converted to a guest suite, family room and home office overlooking a beautifully landscaped garden and views of the Belvedere Lagoon beyond. New decks off of the main living level of the home and the lower floor provide outdoor living space for entertaining. These new bowed decks break up what otherwise might be a heavy three story downhill elevation.
A quaint gateway leads a visitor to a narrow stairway down to a unique entry which has not been changed. The new gate was created to match an existing larger gateway leading to a breezeway below. Above the entry door an arched dormer brings light into an upper level bathroom. This arch dormer and window inspired the design teams ideas for the fenestration on the new addition to the rear of the home.
All of the exterior details of the addition and remodeling were tended to with careful historic reference to Albert Farr's work. New cedar siding was custom milled to match the existing siding of the home. Gable end details, double hung windows, diamond patterned vent screens, decorative eave supports provide texture and details typical of Farr's masterful treatment of his residential work.
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