Neavitt is a historic village of approximately seventy houses located at the end of a slender peninsula with close proximity to St. Michaels’ attractions. The charming village is proud of its own park and playground, a public landing with a launch for canoes and an active community association. With sewer service coming soon, properties can be further developed without the burden of septic fields and SDA’s.
This house was built in 1890 and was thoroughly renovated in 2011. The front façade combines elements of Victorian and Farmhouse styles. The bay wall projection underneath a gable infilled with an arched top attic window and rows of colorful shakes in different geometric shapes is the predominant design element. The front porch’s roof connects the bay wall with the rectangular main entry wing; at the other side, a one-story wing contains a main floor primary suite.
Two talented siblings have both been long time Neavitt residents: the architect Mark McInturff, FAIA and his sister Joan, former art curator and now a realtor with TTR -Sotheby’s International Realty. When the Neavitt Post Office was closed, residents worried about the fate of this distinguished building. Mark purchased the building that is now being renovated as a private residence. A small piece of land behind the Post Office was part of today’s featured property. To preserve the view of Balls Creek from the former Post office building, Mark later bought this property and created a permanent easement.
The rear elevation of this house reaches out to the water with pairs of triple unit windows and outdoor rooms of a main floor deck and an upper floor deck for bird’s eye views of Balls Creek.
The main floor deck is located off the kitchen and breakfast area and was sized to easily accommodate a table and chairs for al-fresco meals. The second floor deck spans across the two-story part of the house for panoramic views of Neavitt’s rooftops and a long vista down Balls Creek.
From the deck, steps lead down to the broad lawn that extends to a stone paved surface with a firepit. Room for two or three chairs around the firepit creates a setting for one to relax and enjoy unobstructed views of Balls Creek.
One of my architectural pet peeves is a shallow front porch. This front porch gets high marks for its depth that accommodates rockers and other seating with ample space for circulation. Since Neavitt is a close-knit community, relaxing on the rocker and greeting neighbors out for a stroll or walking the family dog keeps one updated on community news.
I see so many houses online whose interiors are empty that makes it difficult for potential buyers to visualize how their furniture would look in a new setting. The two siblings Mark and Joan applied their considerable design and real estate expertise to this house’s blank slate and staged the interiors to showcase each room’s features.
The front door opens into the living room and the open stair balustrade expands the spatial volume. I appreciated the vista from the living room through the adjacent family room’s wall opening to the side wall window. The compact floor plan has very little hall space to maximize each room’s size for furniture placement and a continuous flow throughout the house.
The living room’s white walls and ceiling reflect the daylight. The window on the side wall has a tranquil view of a historic chapel and the front window provides indirect light from the front porch. Behind the living room is a short hall from the full bath and laundry closet to the kitchen and primary suite.
The hub of the house is the open plan family-dining-kitchen that spans the full depth of the house. I like eclectic interiors so I appreciated the juxtaposition of the sleek modern furnishings, especially the two Wassily chairs in a caramel leather, with historic architecture. The front bay shaped wall surrounds the sitting area and the windows offer a view of the former Post Office. The beautiful hardwood flooring stands out against the white walls and ceiling.
The spacious dining room easily accommodates a table and chairs for six. Placing the table perpendicular to the front bay wall gives most diners a view, accentuates the depth of the space and enables easy circulation around the table.
A wide wall opening at the dining area separates the dining area from the kitchen across the hall. The kitchen has easy care tile flooring, ample storage on one wall and a partial height wall for clear vistas from the front and back of the open plan layout.
Sunlight penetrates deep into the kitchen. The cozy breakfast area with the table top at the sill height of the long triple unit windows offers views of the landscape and Balls Creek as a backdrop for breakfast or informal meals.
My fave room is the primary bedroom with its pitched ceiling over the one-story space. Another triple unit window and side windows flanking the bed flood the space with sunlight and the skylight for star gazing offers a tranquil preamble to a peaceful sleep.
The primary bath also has a wall of closets opposite the tub-shower combo and the diamond shaped accent window adds a Victorian touch.
At the top of the stair are doors to each of the two spacious guest bedrooms that span across the second floor. Additional steps lead up to the deck at the rear of the house and the French door that opens onto the deck adds more daylight to the stairs.
One guest bedroom is above the open plan area below so its interior architecture is also enhanced by the front bay shaped wall. The depth of the room has ample space for both sleeping and sitting areas.
The other guest bedroom has a double unit window overlooking the front porch’s roof below and the streetscape. Another window at the rear wall overlooks the deck. This bedroom also has ample space for both sleeping and sitting areas.
This house’s unique bonus is the second floor deck that spans across the two-story part of the house. What a great space for enjoying the tranquil bird’s eye panoramic view of Balls Creek and the surrounding charming cottages that give Neavitt so much charm.
Neavitt’s location at the end of a slender peninsula provides peace and quiet to its lucky residents. This charming village with its streetscapes of historic houses has many amenities, including a park, playground and a public landing including a launch for canoes that is unusual for a village of its size. This house has been thoroughly renovated in 2011 and has been freshly painted and newly carpeted to make it move-in ready, just in time for the summer season.
The outdoor rooms of the front porch, rear deck at both the first and second floors and the hardscaped fire-pit area at the rear of the property expand your living space to keep you attuned to the sights and sounds of nature. The house is zoned well with a continuous circulation flow on the main floor connecting the open plan family room-dining-kitchen area to the living room and the primary ensuite. The primary one-story primary ensuite with its cathedral ceiling has total privacy from the second floor spacious bedrooms. Further expansion of the house may be possible now that the burden of septic fields and SDA’s will be moot after the upcoming installation of sewer service.
For more information about this property, contact TTR Sotheby’s International Realty agent Joan Wetmore at 410-673-3344 (o), 410-924-2432 (c) or jwetmore@ttrsir.com . For more photographs and pricing visit https://www.sothebysrealty.com/eng/associate/180-a-df220928172710858981/joan-wetmore,“Equal Housing Opportunity.”
Photography by: Ted Mueller, tedmuellerphotography@gmail.com, 443-955-2490