WRITTEN BY VICTORIA MEDGYESI PHOTOGRAPHED BY BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER

FROM BAINBRIDGE
                   TO BELLTOWN

A lifestyle switch brings big satisfaction in smaller ways

WHAT’S THE VALUE of a penthouse? In this case, David Hewitt and Marcia Wagoner enjoy the soaring 19-foot-high expanse of window that looks over both water and city. The semi-circular Italian leather and fabric couch by Montis (from Current) made the transition from house to condo. So did the horizontal, black bookcases (from Ikea).

YOU DON'T NEED to be a condominium developer to know that downtown residential property is hotter than hot.

Hot for young professionals willing to "live small" to be in the thick of it.

Hot for those with mega-millions to burn.

Hot for those who've lived way-out-there far too long and lust for some mid-life city action.

For the most part, the latter group is what's fueling the downtown stampede. Still, satisfying that demographic's desire for personalized design at an affordable (but let's be honest here, still high-end) price is the challenge. Such was the scenario that preceded architect David Hewitt and Marcia Wagoner's move to their current condo abode.

THE COMPACT KITCHEN layout was left intact, but plastic laminate cabinets were refaced with stainless steel and vertical grain fir (by Cabinets NW). Cabinets in the island were replaced with drawers for storage flexibility. Flowers by Young Flowers. On the wall, sculpture by Peter Millett.

The last time we visited Hewitt and Wagoner (Pacific Northwest, "A Box of Color," Oct. 28, 2001), they were happily puttering around their 3,000 square-foot Bainbridge Island home, making the daily ferry trek to their downtown offices, and anticipating the departure of Wagoner's almost-out-of-the-house sons.

But two years ago, the itch for change became impossible not to scratch.

Within a couple of months of deciding to take the downtown plunge, they sold the island property and rented a 1,000-square-foot-plus unit in the Klee, an upscale Belltown project designed by Hewitt himself. That way, they could see if the reality of city living was as good as the fantasy.

ART, be it functional or decorative, is at the center of the Hewitt-Wagoner household. In the bedroom loft: a fused-glass sculpture, by Ruth Brochman, and eyeglasses from Hewitt’s personal wardrobe.


THE COUPLE describes the loft bedroom as a "private perch with a view to the world." The Nos headboard by Horn (from Current) was one of the pieces to make the house-to-condo transition. To ease the storage crunch, a 2-foot deep, 12-foot long, 9-foot-high closet was built along the back wall. The closet doors of frosted glass and aluminum are by Polyform.

It was a conservative plan given that Hewitt and Wagoner, a principal at the public-affairs firm PRR, already knew more about the downtown scene than most. Hewitt Architects had designed nine major residential buildings in the downtown core, and Wagoner had strong professional connections with development goings-on. The transition was also made easier by the fact that their long-time home was purchased by friends who were happy to live with much of Wagoner and Hewitt's furniture and art while they decided what was what.

Nine months after they signed the rental agreement, the Klee unexpectedly transitioned to condo status. By that time, the couple was ready to say yes to downtown living — especially to a penthouse that featured a wall of windows opening to a panoramic view.

Hewitt and Wagoner had managed to winnow much of their collection of furniture, clothes and books, but another challenge remained. Given that they'd already paid a pretty penny for the penthouse, how were they going to fine-tune an interior designed more for tenant wear-and-tear and less for design-conscious owners?

"PEOPLE ALWAYS TALK about the view, but what gets overlooked is how dramatic the sky itself is," says Hewitt. To customize, the couple installed commercial-grade carpet, custom bookcases along the stairway and increased the diameter of the stair railing. The new neon lights along the stairway are Pradina 3W1 (from Current).


THE WALK-THROUGH closet challenge was handed to California Closets and configured exclusively for Wagoner’s clothes. The couple also designed an attached-to-the-wall vertical-grain fir, stainless-steel and granite chest of drawers, as well as matching sink cabinet fronts (built by Cabinets NW). The masks are by artist A. Jeffrey Zigulis; above the sink, a limited- edition print by Andrew Keating.

First, they were luckier than most. They weren't dealing with a basic box, baby-sized rooms, low ceilings or an upstairs neighbor. Besides, they liked the unit's configuration. The 1,300-plus square feet of space was spread out on two levels. Downstairs was the main living area with an open kitchen, a full bathroom and a small room the couple decided to use as a media/office/guest area. Upstairs was a generous-sized loft bedroom, the main bath and a walk-through closet.

The solution was to significantly upgrade the existing carpet, lighting, cabinet facing, hardware and storage options. Voila! A custom home without going down to the studs.

What took a bit more time was learning how to entertain in a small space. Instead of sit-down dinners at a generously sized dining table, the couple tends to invite friends in for cocktails and make a reservation at a nearby restaurant.

In the final assessment, what's the best thing about city living?

"We have more time to sleep because we don't have to get up for the ferry," says Wagoner with a laugh.

Victoria Medgyesi writes about houses and the interesting people who live in them. Benjamin Benschneider is a Pacific Northwest magazine staff photographer.