Brad Hughes and Karen Monzel Hughes were looking to start a new chapter in one of America’s oldest neighborhoods. As the parents of grown children, with their careers coming to a close, they were slowly planning a retirement that enveloped them in shared passions.

“We were interested in designing and developing a curated cookware store specializing in European and American kitchen products,” Karen says. “And we were adamant about placing the store at Findlay Market and aligning it with the Cincinnati Streetcar.”

As Ohio’s oldest and longest-running commerce hub, Findlay Market has stood since the 1800s, but has only recently reemerged as a gathering place for the public. When Brad and Karen pinpointed the area as a place to retire back in 2015, it had plenty of room for improvement. “The Findlay Market district was primed to reawaken after years of neglect,” Brad says. “Our plan centered around finding contiguous properties that could be developed in two phases. The first phase would center around a building with retail on the first floor and residential rental apartments on the upper floors. Phase two would build a modern ‘age in place’ home for ourselves.”

While Brad’s background in engineering would come in handy during construction, Karen’s career got their plan underway. She was a professor of design at the University of Cincinnati, and she reached out to fellow professor and architect Terry Boling to help them find the ideal lot. Their search just so happened to coincide with the city’s decision to put abandoned lots up for sale, and the trio came across three sites built sometime around 1882. The first site consisted of two buildings that had been boarded up for nearly fifty years, and the second site was a vacant lot.

“We toured many properties before finding the three adjacent lots at the perimeter of Findlay Market,” Boling remembers. “While the buildings were in rough shape, we all felt that the area needed a catalyst for thoughtful redevelopment.”

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After the success of completing the first phase of their partnership in one of the buildings—which included navigating preservation codes to build two high-end apartments and a cookware store, Artichoke, below—the couple and architect were ready to start on their private home in 2018. Given that the second building was essentially an empty brick box, and the vacant lot was a blank slate, they could freely imagine a hideaway that intertwined classic details with of-the-moment finishes.

“We envisioned a very modern home that met all of the rules of the historic district, but allowed us to comfortably age in place,” Brad says. “It had to be designed for entertaining, with a garden and a rooftop, all within a zero-lot-line neighborhood.”

The existing building’s small and cramped layout, which reflects typical row houses of the era, also had east- and west-facing windows that couldn’t be touched. Boling solved this challenge by designing an addition that connects to the building with four large openings, allowing light to flow in. An elevator and wraparound staircase act as the core of the original building, leading to two sets of bedrooms and bathrooms, and two flexible spaces that can be used as offices. There’s also an enclosed, open-air courtyard on the ground level and a rooftop garden at the top.

“The detailing of the steel openings between the existing building and the new one also reinforces a minimal aesthetic,” Boling adds. “Upstairs, large pocket doors allow the bedroom and bathroom areas to connect to the common areas, creating a light-filled environment when privacy is not needed.”

And speaking of a clean aesthetic that plays with light and privacy, the trio’s clever addition of an “art installation” along the west-facing windows shields the living spaces from the street directly outside. “Traditionally, the ground floor would’ve been a storefront,” Brad says. “We didn’t want blinds, and screens were forbidden by the preservation rules. So, the covering along the front windows is designated as a ‘sculpture’ that mimics the brick pattern on the facade—and it got approval by the city.”

The couple put the finishing touches on their home earlier this year, and they are now enjoying a retirement that’s exactly what they had in mind. “Since our first meeting, I was impressed by Brad and Karen’s commitment and enthusiasm for excellent design,” Boling says. “They’re also stewards of the neighborhood.”

More from Terry Boling:

Home Schooled

Project Details:

Architect: Terry Boling / @terryboling

Builder: Damon Long

Structural Engineer: Don Roenker

Cabinetry Design: Noli Modern Italian Kitchens

Other: Karen and Brad Hughes

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A Culinary Couple’s Retirement Plan Helps Revitalize a Cincinnati Neighborhood