PORT ST. LUCIE HOMES
French doors were added to the design by Haarer, below, to prevent visitors from traipsing from the pool through the living room to use the powder room.
Just to the right of the pool, are custom-built Brazilian doors.
WHEELCHAIR-FRIENDLY
The home is handicapped accessible including the guest
suite, which was designed with a kitchen for privacy from the
main house. All doors and hallways are wheelchair-friendly.
For better traction on foot or by wheelchair, the 18-by-18-inch
lightly textured white tiles were installed diagonally in every
room except in the art studio which has a hardwood floor.
Many of the design features Barrie added aren’t obvious
until they are pointed out. Instead of traipsing wet from the
pool through the living room to use the bathroom, there is a
set of French doors leading to the powder room. There are 10
traditional French doors and four pocket doors in the main
house. A raised fireplace has a hearth designed for sitting.
Several French arches with rounded portholes above form
the beautiful view down the hallway from the family room
past the dining room to the living room and out to the river.
Besides their beauty as a design element, the portholes help
the air conditioner’s flow through the house, she said.
Except for channel markers, the river behind the house
looks the same as it did a 100 years ago. With ocean access,
the dock is barely noticeable against the backdrop of the river.
On a recent April morning, easterly breezes were blowing
through the house, which sits at the middle of a bend in the
river.
The master bedroom, living room and a bedroom set up
as an art studio have outstanding sunrise views of the river.
A large screened veranda also offers the same wide water
vistas.
>>
22 Port St. Lucie Magazine
ROB DOWNEY