Lake House

Construction has started on a new “aging in place” home on 90 acres of land in Grundy County, Illinois.  

The design is a modern interpretation of agrarian vernacular structures in the area

The Owners, in their late 70’s, are embarking on this construction experience to fully embrace the next period of their lives.  Conversations about how they envision their life here revolved around being connected to the birds, animals, plants and weather over the change of seasons.  Planning for reduced mobility, the help of a live-in caregiver, ease of maintenance, and access to all areas of the home and its surrounding outdoor spaces were critical design requirements.  They want to enjoy this home when it’s just the two of them– most of the time– and also want it to be comfortable for hosting large groups of family and friends who gather to fish, go boating, and swim in the spring fed lake; hunt and roam the paths of this private conservation area. 
Located along the shore and parallel to the lake, all the principal living spaces will offer peaceful water views.  The home’s oversized front ‘porch’ faces the central “commons” and completes the family compound, encompassing the deck that hangs out over the lake, next to the dock and beach access, the original home and guest home, as well as a pole-barn, and a garage structure, all built over the past 50 years.    

Rewilding the land after industrial history

The Owner’s parents purchased the land in the 1960’s when it was first recovering from being an equipment hub of an extensive strip-mining operation. In fact the impressive landscape features on the property including the lake and contiguous waterways, a large hill that the home faces across the lake, and a long spit on the far end of the property, are all remnants of the effort to remove natural resources from the coal-rich land. The area was originally shaft-mined starting in the 1860’s. Operations shifted to strip mining to remove surface coal from the 20’s to the 40’s.  Note that environmental legislation was introduced in the 70’s that limited the land-scarring practices.