The house search had not gone well for Joe Linhart and Kent Watkins. Years of looking. So many places. Just not right. Unaffordable. A lot of stuff they didn’t want.
“There were wet bars everywhere,” says Linhart. “How many wet bars do you need? And fireplaces in the bedroom take up a lot of space. Oh, and the decorating. It was amazing how bad some places were.”
They found a city townhouse that almost worked–except the deal was contingent on selling their condo. Then 9/11 happened. That was the end of that.
So the two decided to do a one-eighty: build from scratch.
In the spring of 2003, Linhart spotted an ad for a vacant lot. Though Watkins was leery, they visited the site and immediately saw the light. The property was on a cul-de-sac across from a park. Wonderful for Emme, their schnauzer-lhasa mutt.
But the real trump card may have been the prospect of interiors bathed with light, because a condominium’s low-rise garage on the east side was likely a permanent fixture
Linhart started searching the American Institute of Architects Web site for architects who do residential work. He e-mailed prospects and got responses, though not from everybody. “We were on a budget; we weren’t building a Pritzker house,” says Linhart.
With Steve Burns and Mike Ryan of the Chicago firm Burns + Beyerl, they found creativity and respect for their bottom line. While they didn’t have a precise image in mind, Linhart and Watkins were in synch about the style of home they wanted to live in.
“We wanted brick, something transitional, not traditional like everyone else on the block,” says Linhart. “Modern, not dated or trendy, like an ’80s house,” says Watkins. “Something to transcend time but make an architectural statement.”
The dark charcoal-and-russet brick structure is distinctive, with bold expanses of glass defined by black aluminum joinery and zinc-clad copper siding with batten seams at the top, creating a dominant horizontal element.
There’s a balcony on the second level off the master bedroom and a sitting area that cantilevers out to create a covered front entrance. An open plan features a combined living/dining space unencumbered by a stair. The stair is located in the center of the home opposite the kitchen, which spills into the family room. Defined with a grid of shelving that creates a wall between the stair and corridors, architect Mike Ryan says, “We nicknamed it ‘the spine.’ “
The shelving actually was designed because “We have a lot of stuff we were going to display,” says Linhart. “But it looks so nice as an architectural element, we like it bare.” Plus, he says, “it’s easier to keep clean.” Translucent ribbed cellular plastic panels extend the full 24 feet height of the stair wall. “At night it kind of glows,” says Ryan.
If the stair is the spine, the heart of the home is the kitchen, with its beefy but graceful 6-by-8-foot island, elegantly curved on one side. It’s topped with honed black granite.
Upstairs, the master bedroom suite is situated in the front instead of a more typical back location. Its distinction is maple paneling that’s scored to repeat the grid motif. In the back there’s a home office and bath. A lower level features another sitting area with a fireplace.
Beyond the handsome aesthetics, there’s plenty of storage to house the guys’ different passions. Watkins’ is clothing. Linhart’s is crystal and china. Linhart describes Watkins as a “perfectionist”; Linhart is more laid back. But “we have very similar tastes,” says Watkins. “We wanted furnishings that were contemporary but also comfortable, sophisticated but not too overwhelming.”
Since their jobs require a certain formality (Linhart is a funeral director; Watkins works for an international auditing and tax-consulting firm), when the two unwind, it’s jeans-casual at home. They entertain often, usually dinner parties for six to 12. Family brings the numbers up to around 20.
For Watkins, who grew up “very middle class in Peoria,” the home is a source of pride. “We put a lot of effort into it,” adds Linhart. “People tell me you have to build more than one house, so that you correct the mistakes you made. I think it’s perfect the way it is.”
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RESOURCES
Architects: Steve Burns, Mike Ryan, Burns + Beyerl Architects, Chicago. Interior design: Brent Groesbeck, Groesbeck & Associates, Bountiful, Utah. Family room: Sofa-Thomas O’Brien for Hickory Chair, Merchandise Mart, Chicago; gold pillow fabric-Maharam, Mart; Thayer Coggin ottoman-through the designer; Hans Wegner Shell chair and Antonio Citterio small table-Luminaire, Chicago; floor lamp-Fine Arts, Mart; Alejandro Romero painting and other accessories-personal collection. Living room: David Edward Radio City Collection sofa and chair-through the designer; plaid pillow fabric-Robert Allen, Merchandise Mart; Tundra chair-Bernhardt, Mart; painting, “Yellow Blue Red” by David Driscoll-Zola Lieberman Gallery, Chicago; Spun floor lamp-Luminaire; Michael Vanderbyl Achetype Collection for Baker cocktail table, Barbara Barry end table, bauble lamp, Baker; Swaim small table, Michael Aram bowl-personal collection. Dining room detail: Swaim table and Archetype chair-personal collection; Tibetan rug-Rita Rugs, Chicago; “empty” painting by Bruce Riley-Gruen Gallery, Chicago.
