Dream House to Show House

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I spotted this gorgeous, Mediterranean-style house for sale on my drive to work one morning and it got my wheels spinning. What if we were to bring a show house to this area? Is there a local nonprofit that could benefit a la Kips Bay? Is anyone doing this now?

The house is on the corner of Michigan Ave. and Cowley, across from Brody Hall at Michigan State University.

The house is at the outer edge of the Chesterfield Hills neighborhood, in a row of houses like these that I snapped the other night. The limelight hydrangeas in front of the white house are so dreamy...

The interior could use some work but has amazing bones. I love the special details like the Pewabic tile in the entry.

And the period architectural elements like the rounded tops on the windows and doors. The house was built in 1923 and has about 2,800 square feet. I think this is a decent size for accommodating a crowd during a show house tour.

Ideally, one of the designers for my imaginary show house would be someone who handles bigger remodels like kitchens. While I love the copper here, the rest of it is less appealing.

The master bedroom is a nice size with big windows. There are four additional bedrooms in the house, including one that has a separate entry, attached kitchenette, and a rental license (this last part is a HUGE deal in our college town).

The back patio has lots of natural charm but the imaginary show house would seek a landscape designer to turn this into something extraordinary.

Veranda

The landscaping in this inspiration image (with or without the lap pool) is just what I'm envisioning.

 

In my dream planning, the show house would move from year to year between three different towns in our wider community. The varied locations of the show house generate the name for the project: ELOkDew House. There's a lot to be researched still (and I would start with the inspiration here) but I think this could really be great!

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Oddly enough, this house is listed by the same realtor who is selling the house in my neighborhood that I wrote about here.

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