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This Used to Be the “Ugliest House on Mt. Merino”
New York magazine
|July 5-18, 2021
Jeff Hayenga and Michael Belanger’s long-simmering upstate project.
Exterior
The house was recladded in cedar shingles, which have been left untreated.
The Reading Nook
The loft was a wasted space before the renovation, so a ladder was added for access. “The ceiling is tongue-and-groove pine, and the walls are birch plywood,” Michael Belanger says, as he was adamant that there be no painted surfaces to maintain inside or out.
The Back Porch
There are two screened porches in the house; this one, in the back, was added for shade.
The House Before
The ranch house as they found it. Inside was a warren of small rooms with low ceilings.
This story is from the July 5-18, 2021 edition of New York magazine.
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