M/I Homes put enough work into emphasizing the view from its Parade home that looking out is almost as much fun as looking in.
A large covered porch to the rear and side of the house, walkout lower level and open floor plan take full advantage of the scenic area around the five-bedroom, five-bathroom, 5,500-square-foot house.
“The lot that we have has a pretty spectacular view out the back, so we tried to capture that view in all the rooms at the back of the house – both the first floor and the second floor,” says Tim Cook, M/I director of architecture.
The side-and-rear deck is mostly covered, and features a spiral stair descending to the downstairs living area. It and the covered front porch are made with exposed timber frame, which, along with the galvanized metal roof and stone choices, give the house a farmhouse theme “with more of a modern feel to it,” Cook says. Out in the yard is a patio with a fire pit.
The first floor has not one, but two, powder rooms – one accessible from the foyer, and one in the large mud hall off the three-car garage with epoxy floor. It also has a kitchen with a big eat-in island that’s open to both the breakfast area and the great room, making the space accommodating to families.
The great room and den also sport timber ceilings, with the den ceiling in a cathedral style. Opposite the great room from the kitchen is a hearth room with a two-sided fireplace that goes out to the rear deck, where it is situated below a TV screen. The living room and the lower level also have fireplaces, with built-in shelves for stacking wood.
“Up in this area of town, there’s a lot of woods, and we wanted to have that feel of a wood-burning fireplace, which a lot of people have gotten away from nowadays,” Cook says.
Other built-ins include benches in the lower level, space for a dog bed and pet food and water bowls in the mud hall, and areas for homework and computers in the loft upstairs, so children need not be shut in their rooms to work.
The master bathroom has a freestanding tub, but it’s the walk-in shower that draws the most eyeballs with shower heads at both ends, two rain cans in the ceiling and four wall jets on each side.
The lower level is set up for entertaining, with separate areas for adults and kids. A game area complete with bar and pool table serves as the centerpiece. A children’s arcade features three large plasma TVs with game consoles for each on one side and gaming chairs and beanbags for seating on the other side, and an entertainment area on the other side of the game room offers an alternative for the grown-ups without eating up the space a theater would consume.
“The whole rear wall (of the lower level) is all windows and glass doors,” Cook says.
The lower level also has a fifth bedroom and access to a garden room – essentially a garage for storage of lawn and gardening equipment.
