Description

This Bronxville Westchester Colonial renovation reimagines an early-20th-century home for a couple and their two teenage sons, blending historic character with fresh, family-friendly comfort. Set on a prominent corner lot in one of Westchester County’s most architecturally storied villages, the project reflects the owners’ desire to create a welcoming home near extended family, one that retains its classical presence while supporting daily life, recreation, and long-term growth. The result is a deeply considered luxury home renovation that honors the home’s traditional architectural vocabulary while introducing lighter, more livable interiors and a thoughtful network of new indoor–outdoor connections.

Reclaiming a Historic Site for Contemporary Living

Originally part of a much larger estate, the property had been subdivided in the 1960s into three lots, fragmenting the coherence of the original landscape. When our clients purchased the adjoining parcels, including one with a dilapidated carriage house and another containing a deteriorating 1960s split-level structure, they saw the opportunity to restore the spirit of the original grounds. Our team helped guide this historic colonial restoration, removing both aging structures and designing a new stucco-and-slate guest house, pool, and detached garage that together form a harmonious ensemble with the main residence.

Landscape architect Renee Byers led a transformative site plan, reworking the driveway and parking court for improved functionality and creating a sweeping oval rear lawn as a unifying focal point. This central green space now links all three structures, providing both a recreational landscape for the boys and a serene, park-like view from the home’s primary rooms. Extensive plantings, screening trees, ornamental shrubs, and thoughtful garden layers, reinforce privacy and aesthetic cohesion along the highly visible corner lot.

A Classical Addition Envisioned for Modern Family Life - Wood-Framed Wing with Trellised Cornice

The most significant exterior architectural intervention is the new wood-framed family-room wing, designed with classical trim work and a trellis-like cornice fitted with vine supports. This detail softens the architecture, blurs house and garden, and integrates the new construction seamlessly into its historic context. The expanded family room now offers generous light, improved flow, and a relaxed atmosphere that contrasts the previously more formal arrangements.

A redesigned front portico, complete with custom millwork and traditional detailing, enhances curb appeal and re-establishes the home’s architectural hierarchy along the busy primary road. Meanwhile, a new mudroom entry, discreetly tucked into the rear corner of the home addresses the functional realities of family life without diminishing the home’s classical symmetry.

Revitalizing Interiors After Fire, Time, and Everyday Use

Though the home was in good structural condition when we began this second phase of work, its interiors had become heavy and overly formal, and several areas required renewal after a small but impactful fire. The challenge was to preserve the home’s historic charm while introducing the lighter, more welcoming sensibility the owners envisioned.

A Freshened Family Core

The expanded family room anchors the new interior plan. With refined millwork, improved window placement, and upgraded finish palettes, it now functions as an inviting daily gathering space. Adjacent to it, a new breakfast room supports casual dining and informal entertaining, easing the home’s circulation and allowing the kitchen to operate more efficiently.

The kitchen itself, already solid in function, was reconditioned and visually softened, ensuring it remains both timeless and practical. The dining room and entry hall were restored after the fire damage, carefully matching original detailing while taking the opportunity to subtly update color, lighting, and trim for a brighter, more transitional spirit.

Private Spaces with Renewed Comfort

Upstairs, several bedrooms were refreshed with new finishes and selective millwork enhancements. These improvements, while understated, reinforce the home’s overarching transformation: fresh, uncluttered, and aligned with contemporary family life without sacrificing the dignity of the home’s early-20th-century roots.

Interior designer Amy Andrews guided the furnishings, textiles, and decorative lighting, working in concert with our architectural detailing to ensure coherence between the new and old spaces. The collaborative approach preserved the home’s historic ambiance while inviting in softness, warmth, and a more personal sensibility.

A Historic Home Evolved, Not Reinvented

The completed project reflects a philosophy of enhancement rather than reinvention. The house retains its defining characteristics, slate roof architecture, stucco façade, classical trim, while accommodating the needs of a family living fully in the 21st century. Improved circulation, expanded square footage, and renewed interiors allow the home to feel both gracious and grounded, respectful of its place within a historic Bronxville neighborhood.

What emerges is a residence that lives beautifully: one that balances heritage with ease, craftsmanship with comfort, and architectural presence with everyday practicality.

More Information

For more of our Westchester residential architecture and family-centered renovation work, explore our residential Renovations at https://www.hiltonarchitects.com/renovations.

- PROJECT TEAM -

Hilton Interiors | Renee Byers Landscape Architect | Significant Homes