St. John’s District Remodel
Seeking a retreat from his hectic LA life, the client fell in love with a 1900 Victorian in Napa’s historic St. John’s District. He was in escrow when the 2014 earthquake hit. Damaged by the quake — and years of Napa Creek jumping its banks — the house needed serious seismic retrofit and repair to update and replace critical infrastructure. An added challenge was opening the home up within the building envelope of 1,500 square feet. Paul Kelley Architecture set about repositioning the existing stairwell, which had bisected the house. Formerly closed-off rooms now flow freely, creating a lovely, light-filled residence. Kelley used contemporary materials that nodded to the home’s history: wide plank flooring, panel and barn doors, tin-tile backsplash. New redwood siding was milled to perfectly match the exterior walls. With his retreat restored, rejuvenated and reinforced, the owner enjoys shedding stress on trips north to his now-perfect Wine Country getaway.