Unlike two of the residential streets off highway 33 in Easton that take their name from the historic estate houses of Doncaster or North Bend, the neighborhood of Arcadia Shores takes its name from an ancient Greek province, “Arcadia”. Today the name evokes a pastoral place of simple pleasure in harmony with nature. Unlike the Grecian Arcadia that was a landlocked province, this neighborhood of Arcadia Shores is surrounded on three sides by Newcomb Creek and the Miles River leading to the Eastern Bay. Woods along Highway 33 and the meandering entry drive that splits and becomes a large arc linking the waterfront and inland lots before looping back to the entry drive provide privacy. Since there is no outlet, it is a family friendly street for walking and biking.
This house is located on an inland lot at the NW corner of the arc with glimpses of the water from the property. The house faces one side of the corner and the driveway is accessed from the other corner so the garage doors are not visible from the front of the house. The massing is very pleasing with the “L” shaped one-story wing containing the two-car car garage’s front gable next to a short hyphen connecting the primary bedroom suite to the two-story house. The “L” shape creates a deck with exterior doors to both the garage and a room currently used as an office.
At the side elevation, the house form becomes a New England salt box with the roof sloping down from the front two-story wall to the rear one-story wall. The red brick chimney becomes a sculptural element with its wide base and one side that corbels up twice with sloped copings to meet the top portion of the chimney with its rows of corbeled brick framing the flue opening. I like the Shaker simplicity of the house’s creamy lap siding with accents of deep blue-green cornice board, dentil molding at the soffit, eave trim and trim around the entry door and windows with the ubiquitous Eastern Shore detail of low sloped headers and the harmonious arrangement of windows around the entry door at the center of the house. The Mid-Century Modern front door with three glazed units in a rain glass pattern was a clue that the interior design might be a non-traditional surprise and indeed it was.
The Owners greeted me at the door and I had a clear view of the open plan living-dining area furnished with a wrap-around sofa defining the sitting area and a beautiful Scandinavian wood dining table with wood molded chairs. The brick surround of the firebox next to the wood storage box becomes another sculptural element and was painted white to lessen the impact of its massing and the long 6/9 windows bring filtered sunlight through the wood slat blinds. I imagine the Owners’ two small dogs appreciated being able to easily see the landscape from the floors!
I especially liked the vista from the dining room table centered on a triple glass door unit to the spacious deck overlooking the pool and the landscape in the deep yard. The Mid-Century Modern sideboard at the rear wall next to the glass doors is strategically placed to be a buffet for large parties that flow from the deck to the living-dining area. The kitchen has been upgraded with new white cabinets, hardware, granite countertops and full backsplash veined in shades of gray and stainless steel appliances. The bar stools at the kitchen counter overhang match the stylish wood dining room chairs for extra seating.
The hall bath has several uses since it has an exterior door for convenient access from the pool area and the main floor bedroom. The bath has two separate lavatory cabinets that could be rearranged to make side by side lavatories to open up the space and the half glass exterior door could have a frosted pane for privacy. The front room next to the foyer is offset from the primary bedroom at the rear of the house. The two rooms could be combined to create a primary suite with access to the private deck between the garage and the two-story main wing of the house. The second floor contains two spacious bedrooms at the front corners of the house that are almost identical in size. Behind the rear walls are large closets tucked under the slope of the roof. Between the bedrooms are the stairs and the combination laundry-full bath accessed from the hall.
The property has three acres for privacy and expansive lawns for play and relaxation, several mature trees for shade and a fenced pool area. This neighborhood has a very desirable location between St. Michaels and Easton and the entry drive is across highway 329 for access to Royal Oak and the Bellevue Ferry. The property’s amenities of water views between the houses along the Miles River, large pool and deck for family fun and entertaining, recent upgrades including floor finishes and the kitchen cabinets, countertops and finishes, open plan living-dining-kitchen area providing views of the wood burning fireplace from both the seating and dining area and main floor primary suite make this house move-in ready. In ancient Greek Mythology, “Arcadia” was the home of the God Pan and his court of dryads and nymphs; this Arcadia is home to full and part time residents who enjoy its private and serene setting of water and woods with broad vistas across large lawns.
For more information about this property, contact Rachael Harrison with Long and Foster Real Estate-Christies International Real Estate at 410-745-0283 (o), 443-786-4502 (c), or [email protected]. For more photographs and pricing visit www.longandfoster.com, “Equal Housing Opportunity”.
Spy House of the Week is an ongoing series that selects a different home each week. The Spy’s Habitat editor Jennifer Martella makes these selections based exclusively on her experience as a architect.
Jennifer Martella has pursued her dual careers in architecture and real estate since she moved to the Eastern Shore in 2004. Her award winning work has ranged from revitalization projects to a collaboration with the Maya Lin Studio for the Children’s Defense Fund’s corporate retreat in her home state of Tennessee.
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