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Overview

This was architect Lionel Pries's last major residence, designed for a lot in Seattle's Laurelhurst neighborhood in 1965.

Building History

The owners were Max and Helen Gurvich, whose family included three daughters. They resided in the residence from 1965 until about 2010. The Gurviches bought their lot on Webster Point in Laurelhurst for $45,000, a significant outlay of money in the mid-1960s.

Building Notes

This 5-bedroom, 5-bath house contained 5,301 square feet on one floor and an exposed basement. The lot was .320 of an acre; it came equipped with a dock that could moor 4 boats. The Gurvich House had an asking price of $6,800,000 in 03/2010. The house was empty between 2010 and 2016, and marketed between 2014 and 2016.

Alteration

Architect Marvin Anderson worked with Darren Patt Construction on the 2016-2018 renovation. Bridget Hembree-Ross served as Anderson's Project Architect on the Gurvich House. During this remodeling effort, the kitchen, and master suite were updated, and the building's energy efficiency improved. Architect Anderson said of the effort: "We preserved and modernized...yet touched the house only lightly, creating new spaces and enhancing spatial flow while respecting the original design intent, materials nad details." (See Sany Deneau Dunham, "Home as Homage," Seattle Times Pacific NW Magazine, 01/20/2019, pp. 16-17.)

Anderson altered a storage room into more space for the master suite. He opened up the kitchen, darkened the roof beam color to add contrast, and added new cabinets and countertops. A new light fixture was added to the dining area. The floor of terrace was raised, to provide greater integration between interior and exterior. To assist in this, a transparent glass railing, anchored by steel supports, facilitated views out to the waterfront.

PCAD id: 8690