AIA Home: A Lakeside Kirkland Home

Splendidly situated a block from Kirkland’s Lake Washington Boulevard, this three-story house was designed with plenty of decks and windows to capture the mesmerizing lake and mountain views.

AIA Seattle // NW Home
OPEN HOUSE
Edition 6 :: Number 30
Architectural Firm ::
Baylis Architects
Cost :: Approximately $232 per square foot for a
3,762-square-foot house (total project cost might include
additional fees for other services that are not reflected).
Tour it :: Sunday, March 21
(see details below)


Anna and Joe Goeke approached building their first home together with an impressive lack of trepidation.

They knew exactly what they wanted: a modern, view-maximizing, flexible design with a reverse floor plan to replace their tiny 750-square-foot, two-bedroom home (one of many basic boxes built in their Kirkland neighborhood for shipyard workers in the 1940s). They happened upon just such a house being built down the street by Bellevue’s Baylis Architects and quickly tapped Baylis associate Susan Busch to helm their home’s design.

When material costs bloated their budget pre-construction, they made swift decisions and smart concessions without sacrificing their larger design goals. (For example, plans to install an elevator with future accessibility in mind, weren’t scrapped altogether. Instead, the house is elevator-ready and, when financing and timing allow, it can be run-ready within a week.) Even the surprise news of a coming child, Annika, mid-process, didn’t slow the couple.


Of course, when you consider where Anna, a therapist, and Joe, a software developer, first met, their sure-footed, pedal-to-the-metal style makes sense. Both racing enthusiasts, each holding championship titles on the local Sports Car Club of America circuit, Joe was once Anna’s race-car driving instructor.

When it came to designing the Goekes’ home, Susan Busch demonstrated some skilled maneuvering herself. The small lot that was challenging from the outset got even smaller when Busch discovered city-mandated setback restrictions for both the east and west entrances. Her design response was to focus on the vertical. The resulting three-story, 3,762-square-foot house comprises two rectangular forms united by a beguiling angled, space-expanding skylight.

“The property lines on this site are not parallel. They angle from each other,” explains Susan. “We put an angle section [of skylight] down the middle of the house to try to get every bit of extra living space.” The design thereby, nicely meets one of Joe and Anna’s primary desires for a spacious great room. “We’re almost always in the same room when we’re home,” says Anna. “We didn’t want lots of different rooms with lots of different TVs, lots of unused space and lots of closed-door space that just sits there. We really want to use everything. So, the great room concept was important for us.”

The ladder-style skylight also sharply amps up the dwelling’s charm and power-saving daylighting scheme. “One of the things that I love about this space is the light from all sides all day long,” comments Busch. The choice of obscure glass, she adds, “really helps to create that even, diffused light. It’s very soothing.”

Within the light-wrapped great room, offering 180-degree views of Lake Washington, are the living room, dining room and kitchen bordered by a custom bar topped with a piece of reclaimed wood and sporting a shimmering line of green art glass. Warm-toned custom cabinetry and a comfy window seat line the kitchen’s far wall, which also houses a much-loved espresso maker. “It pays for itself,” says Joe with satisfaction. “We make coffee in the morning here. We don’t go to Starbucks.” Anna has her sights set on an adjacent outdoor kitchen as well. Currently, the deck features a popular dining area heated by lamps, but it already is plumbed to accommodate a complete outdoor kitchen.

One floor down are the couple’s master bedroom and bath, their daughter’s bedroom, a guest bath and bedroom/office and a laundry room, complete with a window and a sturdy built-in wooden ironing board. (Jokes Anna, “I figure if I don’t iron with a view, then I’ll never ever get out the iron.”) There is also a clothes-drying cabinet, which was Anna’s special request, as was the ban on built-in closets in the bedrooms, replaced with Ikea wardrobes. These elements can be traced to Anna’s native land. “Anna is Swedish,” notes Susan. “She was really clear about no built-in closets, which is very European...and was very active in the design process, especially when we got into color and materials. I think that her heritage and personality really shine through.”

The lower floors are also where more budget-saving, flexible design is in evidence. The couple eschewed having a soaking tub inside in favor of a future hot-tub just steps from their bath outside. Rather than waste interior space for a tub that you might occasionally use,” says Susan, “we managed to eek out space for it [outside]. Adds Joe, “It’s an easy [budget] cut of about $10,000 dollars.” Other future-enabled projects: an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) off of the garage, and a Joe must-have item, a hydraulic car-lift-ready slot in the two-car garage. “I can call a guy and have him install it in a day,” he says.

While there was some penny-pinching, the Goekes also knew where to splurge. “When you work with an architect, you can choose all kinds of different phases that you’re willing to pay for,” says Anna. “The choice we made was to put up some money to keep them to completion. It felt good emotionally. I had multiple people to talk to….I would have been extremely overwhelmed if I just had to answer the builder’s questions without being able to talk it through with Susan….That was one of the best choices we made.”


Open House Tour
Our ongoing partnership with the American Institute of Architects Seattle Chapter (AIA Seattle) continues our commitment to bring the experience of Puget Sound–area residential design to our readers. Each issue, we showcase an architect-designed home, selected by AIA Seattle and Northwest Home, which will be open to the public for a Sunday-afternoon viewing. We invite you to tour this issue’s featured home, designed by Susan Busch of Baylis Architects, located in Kirkland at 6525 102nd Ave. NE, on Sunday, March 21, between noon and 3 p.m. For more information on the tour and the Open House program, please visit nwhome.com or aiaseattle.org; 206.448.4938.

FIND IT
AIA Home of the Month: The High Life Page 15 Architects: Susan Busch, associate, AIA, LEED AP, and Brian Brand, principal in charge, Baylis Architects, 10801 Main St., Bellevue; 425.454.0566; baylisarchitects.com. General contractor: Ed Dean, Dean Development Company, 10801 Main St., Suite 110, Bellevue; 425.451.8350. Structural engineer: Andy Herrick, Sliderule Engineering Works, 1932 First Ave., Seattle; 206.728.4844. Hardscape architect: Dave McNeal, JGM Landscape Architects; 2800 Northup Way, Bellevue; 425.454.5723; jgm.com. Planting design/installation: Malone’s Landscape Design/Build, Covington; 888.837.1938; maloneslandscape.com. Appliances: Miele range hood, espresso maker and convection microwave, Liebherr refrigerator, Gaggenau gas cooktop, Electrolux wall oven and warming drawer and ASKO drying cabinet, Albert Lee, 1476 Elliott Ave. W, Seattle; 206.282.2110; albertleeappliance.com. Custom maple cabinetry (kitchen, master bath, powder room, living room and window seat): Canyon Creek Cabinet Co., 1676 Tye St. SE, Monroe; 360.348.4600 or 800.228.1830; canyoncreek.com. Kitchen countertops: Pennsylvania Blue Stone slab. Kitchen, dining room, master bath lights: Tech Lighting; 847.410.4400; www.techlighting.com. Bar stools: Ikea, 601 SW 41st St., Renton; 425.656.2980; ikea.com/us. Custom salvaged wood bar, powder room countertop: Urban Hardwoods, 4755-C Colorado Ave. S, Seattle; 206.766.8199; urbanhardwoods.com. Custom art glass (bar, backsplash, powder room): Karina Del Savio; contacto@karinadelsavio.com.ar; karinadelsavio.com.ar. Kitchen floor tiles: Crossville Porcelain, Empire Series, United Tile, 3001 E Valley Rd, Renton; 425.251.5290; unitedtile.com. Custom master bath vanity: Canyon Creek. Master bath sink: Kohler Ladena. Guest bath vanity: Ikea. Dining table, leather couch: Kasala, 1018 116th Ave. NE, Bellevue; 425.453.2823; kasala.com. Sliding maple door with Lumicor resin panels: Designed by Baylis Architects. Hardwood flooring: White Oak, Puget Sound Hardwood Floors, Sammamish; 425.869.7974; hardwoodguy.com. Heated flooring: Nuheat; nuheat.com. Windows: Milgard; milgard.com. Sliding glass door: Weather Shield; weathershield.com. Skylight: CrystaLite; crystallite.com. Stair, deck railing: Seattle Spiral, 4885 Lakehurst Lane SE, Bellevue; 425.943.0042; seattlespiral.com. Permeable pavers: SF Rima with Eco-Stone accents, Mutual Materials, 605 119 NE, Bellevue; 425.452.2300; mutualmaterials.com.


AIA Seattle // NW Home
OPEN HOUSE
Edition 6 :: Number 30
Architectural Firm ::
Baylis Architects
Cost :: Approximately $232 per square foot for a
3,762-square-foot house (total project cost might include
additional fees for other services that are not reflected).
Tour it :: Sunday, March 21


Originally published in March 2010