This Old House · Season 23 · Episode 2

The Manchester House - 2

Saturday, September 29

The day starts off with the landscaping works of Roger Cook. He and his crew cut down a few trees that were threatening the house, have move a dozen or so rhododendrons and azaleas that are in the way of the new addition, and are preapring to move a 25-foot evergreen and a 20-foot dogwood by balling the roots and using a large excavator. Inside, architect Stephen Holt shows a model of the proposed renovation to homeowner David McCue and Steve. Essentially, he hopes to restore the building to its former architectural beauty on the outside, while overcoming some floorplan problems to make it work better for the McCues inside. Part of the interior rearrangement includes putting the kitchen front and center in the house, something that wouldn't have been found in the original Shingle style building. To prove it can be done, Holt takes David and Steve to a nearby house, of a similar vintage, where he accomplished just such a change for the client. Back at the house, our master carpenter and