Garth shade: Glass, nautical theme, cottage enliven 9 acres

Address: 2004 and 1975 Walnutside Place          
Neighborhood: Garth Road area of Albemarle
Asking: $1,049,000
Assessment: $1,011,600
Year Built: 1985
Size, primary house: 3,652 finished, 720 unfinished
Size, cottage: 1,132 finished, 384 unfinished
Land: 8.8 acres assessed (9.41 acres in current listing)
Agent: Tommy Brannock, BHG Real Estate III, 434-977-3033
Curb Appeal: 8 out of 10

The Albemarle couple who designed and built this unique home called "Meadow Run" were clearly influenced by a passion for all things nautical. Aptly labeled a “transitional," the style mixes traditional with its Victorian furnishings and window treatments, but a buyer will also notice modern swaths of glass and spacious scale— along with the nautical motifs— to infuse a modern tack.

A spacious double-height entryway leads to a stunning central hall heralded by double columns and loaded with shelves (currently displaying books about the sea, naturally). A settee faces rolling pastures through two stories of glass in a view complemented by a combination of French doors and overhead casement windows, with a Palladian window at the top.

The area for entertaining seems endless. A formal living room occupies one side of the house, enlivened by three sliding glass doors and a wall of windows. A wood-burning fireplace nestles between full-length views of the fields. On the other side is an ample dining room and a first-floor bedroom with full bath, office, and laundry room.

From the dining room, one can exit through a sliding door to a deck or walk into the kitchen and great room. This section of the house contains two fireplaces with hand-painted decorative tiles, built-in bookcases, and, yes, more sliding glass doors. Several skylights bring a warm glow to the white laminate cabinets and ocean-blue countertops, an area that could be renovated to accommodate a professional-sized kitchen. Outside the kitchen door is a garage connected by a veranda, and in the field below sits a rustic barn waiting for renovation— and ruminating guests.

A stairway delineated by a wavy half-wall leads to an oversized landing and walkway where, leaning over white metal rails resembling a boat deck, one can gaze down to the first floor or out the windows for distant mountain views.

A sliding glass door in the expansive master bedroom leads to an exterior balcony with the same maritime-themed white railings. Back inside, a walk-in closet is illuminated by a skylight and serviced by a dumbwaiter and double-sink bath. The decor in all rooms reflects the 1980s with no shortage of louvered doors, pastel carpeting, vinyl flooring, and laminate counters. The bedrooms are generously proportioned, and the bathrooms are plentiful, so any transformations may require just a few trendier materials.

The 9+ acres that make up "Meadow Run" begin near a large pond and ends at a hilltop. The gently-sloping gravel road runs off of Garth, between Foxfield and Owensville Road. The wooded canopy along the road to the property makes it feel remotely situated.

Before constructing the main residence, the owners built a one-story cottage wrapped in a wide deck.  From this vantage point, they watched their dream home as it was constructed. Its finished walkout basement level contains an additional bedroom and bath, making it a comfortably charming retirement or caretaker’s home, and it's included in the sale of the property. However, as a bonus, an owner has the right to divide the property into two lots.

As transitions go, the old must make way for the new, and this property will take some ingenuity to make it shipshape. Fortunately, the owners had the good design sense to incorporate expansive areas of glass and an open floor plan, so there is a great foundation on which to tinker.
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