Replacing a run-down cottage on a narrow Chesapeake Bay lot in Middle River, Maryland, Penza Bailey Architects got creative. The team stayed within the home’s small footprint with its proximity to the water while designing a modern abode that accommodates a family, with a separate apartment for the wife’s mother. “The property is located on a flood plain,” says principal Jeff Penza, “so we lifted the whole house one story and put the living spaces on the top floor to take advantage of the views.”
Watery vistas also abound on the level below, which houses the bedrooms. In the master bath (pictured here), a roll-in shower enclosure is clad in porcelain tile and a custom floating vanity holds two Duravit vessel sinks. The Victoria + Albert soaking tub faces a direct-vent gas fireplace in a stacked-stone-look tile wall; beside the tub, double windows reveal expansive water views. “Bathers can see both the fireplace and the water,” Penza explains. “And two square windows instead of one big one feel a little playful.”
Architecture: Jeffrey A. Penza, AIA, LEED AP, principal; Ryan Behneman, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP, project architect, Penza Bailey Architects, Baltimore, Maryland. Builder: Rick Batton, F.C. Batton & Son, Inc., Monkton, Maryland.
