A two-car garage is a luxury rarely afforded to residents of the quaint neighborhoods in downtown Charlottesville. Tucked behind a single-story home is just that, although its mere existence is not its most remarkable trait. This carport is equipped with solar panels generating enough power to charge an electric vehicle—and more. The first of its kind […]
“You can do irrefutably impossible things with the right amount of planning and support from intelligent and hardworking people and pizza,” says writer Scott Gimple. Rockpile Construction’s masterpiece pizza oven is a testament to that assertion. The team at Rockpile had just completed a custom-built home in Albemarle County when the clients approached owner […]
Jennifer and Wil VanLoh had reached the stage in life where they were thinking about having a vacation home, a small retreat, someplace different from their home in Houston. Their daughter Mary was headed off to UVA, in a charming college town right next to the Blue Ridge Mountains. Wouldn’t it be nice to have […]
Summer in Virginia. It’s hot and humid; you’re sticky and cranky and don’t feel like moving—or even leaving the house. Wouldn’t you love to have a pool, right outside the back door? A swimming pool makes the summer fun instead of unbearable—and in this area, one that’s well-designed can create a space for outdoor living […]
Ruth Chiari and Phil Simon wanted a modest single-family home close to amenities when they moved to Charlottesville. But with nothing on the market befitting the couple, they shifted focus to a single-bedroom apartment—with plenty of clever renovations. “I wanted something that gave me a feeling of space and light,” Chiari says. “We were also […]
Charlottesville residents could easily sell their homes without staging 10 years ago. Now, most buyers expect every detail to be covered, from fastidious interior designto meticulous landscaping, according to local realtor Lorrie Nicholson. “Staging allows people to visualize themselves in the home and helps create an emotional connection,” Nicholson says. “From my experience, you always […]
When Matthew Jull and Leena Cho, of Charlottesville-based architecture firm KUTONOTUK, first heard of a competition hosted by Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, to design a major upgrade to its oceanside boardwalk, the architects were intrigued. “Within a town with such a rich history, and in such a dynamic environment, how do we create new spaces […]
“My husband and I used to take walks along Locust Avenue, and we just adored this one old house,” says Bryant Taylor. “It had an amazing yard, with lots of green space—and both of us love a project.” For the Taylors, “project” is an understatement: Alan is co-founder and president of Riverbend Development, and Bryant […]
The tiny house craze may have tempered a touch, but in the right application, downscale domiciles can still bring it big time. Crozet-based John and Lori O’Connor contracted with Charlottesville Area Builders to construct a new farmhouse several years ago. They didn’t plan to add a guest house but came to the idea as an […]
For an artist moving to Charlottesville from the West Coast, dashed urban hopes led to a near-downtown dream renovation. The homeowner quickly learned the loft-style living and working space she wanted wasn’t currently available, but she says she got lucky. She found a single-family home on Lexington Avenue that had already undergone a modern renovation […]