One great perks of the job that comes with writing for Daltxrealestate.com, is meeting some really great agents. Last week we looked at a historic, honey of a house in Hemphill Heights listed by Briggs Freeman’s Gwen Harper, who had such an interesting portfolio that I contacted her about one of her listings at 2225 West Winton Terrace West in Park Hill. Actually, her portfolio is a bit slimmer this week owing to recent sales, including the Heights property, which predictably went under contract after last week’s open house.
The truth is, I don’t need much of an excuse to tempt me into Park Hill, one of my favorite and one of the loveliest of all Fort Worth neighborhoods. What is it about Park Hill? Park Hill has a solidity and sense of permanence that comes with time. Distinctive houses rest on deep set-back bluff lots, enveloped in beautiful landscaping and mature trees. And then there is — excuse the foreign phrase — an elusive, Park Hill je ne sais quoi. The more one dissects the romantic façade of a Park Hill beauty of 1920s vintage, the more layers of true architectural sophistication one uncovers.
The 1927 Winton Terrace house dispenses with symmetry and instead breaks into three balanced and stepped blocks, In fact, none of the superior windows align with first floor openings, but look beautifully proportioned, employing a rich Beaux Arts vocabulary of Mediterranean revival elements. The entry is anchored by simplified Salomonic columns framing an arched opening capped by a keystone.
Covering the Fort Worth housing market, I sometimes feel like I’m writing real estate porn. I shudder to think what a 5,200-square-foot house of this quality and design would cost in Miami, or in California or, for that matter, Dallas. Good luck building a house of this quality for the under-$300-per-square-foot asking price anywhere.
The formal living room is now being used as an office, owing to the irresistible garden views. The pleasingly perfect proportions of many of the rooms elude photography. Walls spring into coved ceilings. The fireplace is framed by period Batchelder tiles. Observe the singularity of the arched openings on the ground floor.
The kitchen is the result of skillful inclusion of a breakfast room. The scale is super-sized. The expansive center island includes a wine fridge and second sink. Counter tops are fashionable quartz.
The kitchen overlooks a family room addition which the current owners reworked and rationalized to meld beautifully with the rest of the house.
How many builders today, working in the traditional idiom, attempt and fail the beauty of a staircase like this? A graceful landing features vintage arched stained glass windows.
The current master bedroom sits over the addition, which allowed space for a large master bath and extensive closet with packing island and additional storage.
The off bedroom terrace echoes original elements elsewhere like the broken tile paving.
All four bedrooms are on the second floor. A Jack-and-Jill bath joining two of them features gorgeous Hispano-Moresque tiles inspired by the Alhambra, which are still in production, and would set you back $120 or so per square foot.
Two private courtyards at back are kept open on cool nights to accommodate guests when entertaining.
Gwen Harper of Briggs Freeman Sothebys Fort Worth has priced 2225 Winton Terrace West at $1.55 million.
Eric Prokesh is an interior designer whose work has appeared on HGTV, and in books and publications including D Home, Southern Accents, House Beautiful, and House and Garden. In January 2005, HG named Eric one of the 50 tastemakers in America and D Home has included him as one of Dallas’ Best Designers for 10 years. Having lived most of his life in Dallas, he now calls Fort Worth home and is one of our experts on beautiful Fort Worth Dirt. His own home on historic Elizabeth Blvd. has been featured in 360 West.
