When Greg and Laurie Calac first drove by 145 Midway Avenue in the Awali Heights neighborhood of Auburn in 2005, the house was so obscured by shrubs that they kept on driving and put it out of their minds.
Six months later in early 2006, their friend and owner of the home, Mary Ann Joye, asked them to take another look.
After significant cleanup of the exterior, increased visibility spawned a creative vision and much debate that resulted in Greg and Laurie buying the rancher and thoroughly renovating it to their exacting standards.
The undulating hills of Awali Heights are enhanced by mature landscaping and oversized lots, and the neighborhood’s heavy forestation immediately attracted Greg’s sense of adventure for what he was about to undertake.
Originally built in 1946 by Joye’s father-in-law, Dr. Kenneth Joye, the founder of the Auburn Clinic shortly after World War II, the home was in the Joye family for 60 years prior to the Calacs’ purchase.
Dr. Joye, a visionary himself, framed the home in 8-inch thick concrete walls to ward off nature’s enemies — rot, termites, fire and fatigue — and over time, expanded the modest home to 4,200 square feet to accommodate his growing family.
Before building began, there was a large amount of deconstruction to do. Daunting as the task appeared, Greg set out to deliver Laurie’s dream and never found a challenge he was not equal to surmounting.
When cutting away the memories of a bygone era, Greg was careful to preserve the integrity of the home’s rich history, and still deliver on their conversion as planned.
The original douglas fir wood flooring was carefully removed, safely stored away and lovingly reinstalled with a glossy finish.
What was the front door became a side wall of the master bedroom — the new front entrance was relocated to the far side of the house and is now crowned by a 7-foot high entry tower, reflective of Greg and Laurie’s contemporary vision.
Greg retained the living room fireplace as a central element of character and also a touchstone of the home’s rich history.
The roof was replaced with engineered trusses, allowing a new cement tile roof over vaulted ceilings for a heightened sense of grandeur.
Greg’s attention to detail was exhaustively thorough and efficient. He mastered the repurposing of existing materials.
Beaded glass windows on a sacrificed solarium became kitchen cabinet doors. Gladding/McBean brick pavers from the solarium were recycled into the living room fireplace and a front door entryway.
The family room became an open court and the masonry fireplace, formerly in the house, now anchors the back end of the courtyard.
A subtly lit hallway features alcoves and walls softened by transforming conventional square doorways to archways. Recessed indirect lighting dramatically illuminates the plaster ceiling, and additional windows opening to the courtyard have been added, pulling in available natural light on overcast days. Late evening shadows evoke a somnolent cathedral aura down the long hallway.
Greg preserved the concrete walls and installed gypsum walls immediately adjacent to them to house plumbing and utilities installation. The handsomely rendered gypsum-plastered walls and ceilings are distinguished by a one-inch thick coating with color added for a unique faux finish that does double duty for practicality and decorative flair, and are kid proof. Greg learned the skill of plastering from his father at the tender age of 12, working every summer and holiday and eventually formed his own company, which he operates today.
After 16 months of a labor of love, the new home, reduced in size by a third, and rendered unrecognizable to former residents who were invited to the house warming, was now steeped in modernity by its master craftsman and new proprietor. Greg and Laurie welcomed neighbors and members of the Joye family who marveled at the transformation and lauded their blending of the old and new in a balance of respect for history and an acquiescent nod to eclectic design. Greg’s dream became Laurie’s castle.
After a year of enjoying the fruits of their labors, Greg and Laurie are fully invested in Awali Heights now and treasure the siren call of the trains in the distance, the plink of aluminum bats from kids at play in nearby Auburn Recreation Park, and the short walk to Old Town for breakfast or evening dining. The dream lives on.
Talking Houses runs occasionally in Gold Country Homes. Jerry Sellers is a Realtor with
HomeTown Realtors in Auburn, he can be reached at (916) 871-8801, or e-mail him at
seejerry@seehometown.com.
