Red Butte House

The Red Butte Home is a historic Tudor house located along Red Butte Creek in Yalecrest, a wooded residential neighborhood of Salt Lake City's East Bench. Built in 1929, the unique facade demands attention and the building stands out as a historic gem among a neighborhood of architecturally significant historic homes. The houses in this neighborhood were largely built from 1910 to 1938 and reflect the popular styles of the era, including period revival cottages in English Tudor and English Cottage styles. Nestled among the large and winding tree-lined streets of the Harvard-Yale District, the character of this home boldly alludes to what the owners already recognized–how special the home and lot beyond could be for their young growing family.

The program was simple: a new kitchen and dining area, two additional kids' bedrooms, and a bathroom for the growing family that respected the historic house while creating a modern outdoor living space. However, it presented significant challenges due to its location within a Historic Preservation Overlay Zone and its tight site with limited access to the rear. With a limited footprint, and connectivity to the outdoors being paramount, vertical circulation, openings between floors, and open glassy walls provided functional and beautiful solutions to space planning.

Old brick and stone from the rear of the house salvaged and reused in the pavilion wall panels recalls the character of the original Tudor brick structure while steel frame and double glazed windows and doors define the addition as a product of its time. Terrazzo floors, and a grain-figured marble island and backsplash, infuse the space with a textural and compelling organic color palette.