ON THE COVER

from 2020 Methow Home

INSPIRED SURROUNDINGS

Growing in place

A ‘seamless’ remodel adds amenities in a slightly larger space

BY DON NELSON

There are some things that will never change at Tom and Mary Lencheks’ homesite on Elbow Coulee Road. The sumptuous views won’t be compromised. Wildlife abounds. Dark and quiet nights will be the norm. Solitude is guaranteed.

But the small, practical cabin the Lencheks built 20 years ago has undergone a substantial remodel — as might be expected when one of the homeowners is an architect — to a full-time residence, without claiming a much larger footprint. The remodeled house was featured in Confluence Gallery’s 2019 Methow Valley Home Tour.

Tom Lenchek has been designing homes in the Methow Valley for more than 25 years — some 40 residences in all, he figures. His Seattle-based firm, formerly Balance Architects and now called Prentice+Balance+Wickline Architects, is active throughout the West and has had a Winthrop office since 2000.

The Lencheks bought the 40- acre property, which extends across Elbow Coulee Road, in 1984, and put in the basics — power, well, septic. “We liked the view to the east, and that it got sun in the winter,” Lenchek says of the site.

The original cabin’s construction began in 1998. The Lencheks are avid outdoorspeople, and the two-bedroom, one-bath, 1,400-square-feet structure was intended as a recreational base when they were in the valley. They started out focused on winter sports, but then discovered that there was also an enticing summer in the Methow.

“It was definitely a cabin,” Lenchek says of the original structure. “It wasn’t meant to be a full-time house.” Mary adds that the intent from the beginning was that it be a low-maintenance space. The cabin was ready for occupancy in 2000.

MORE FEATURES

In the past few years as the Lencheks began to transition from Seattle to the Methow — Mary is a “happily retired” attorney who was with a major Seattle law firm; Tom describes himself as semi-retired — the need for a more full-time space became evident as their visits became more frequent.

The home isn’t much bigger — expanded by about 300 square feet, Lenchek says — but the resulting remodel added lots of features that make the cabin feel much more expansive. The contractor was Tom Bjornsen. Lenchek said he had to make a decision as an architect (in consultation with his wife) about how to expand the original cabin. “We came around to the idea of blending it seamlessly into the [existing] house,” he says. Indeed, unless Lenchek points out where the remodeling occurred, one would be hard-pressed to figure it out.

The additions include a new entrance and mudroom/pantry, an outdoor screened sleeping porch (formerly a roofless patio) with retractable Murphy bed, and a second bathroom that includes a washer and dryer. The kitchen and original bathroom were also redone.

Outside, the Lencheks added a spacious covered “living area” — a deck that features a customfabricated steel fireplace, living room-style furniture and dining table — that is perfect for seasonal entertaining. The deck — a prefabricated concrete slab on a steel frame — is cantilevered to the south to improve views, and has retractable awnings. Like the screened sleeping porch, the deck is intended to extend the Lenchek’s outdoor time as much as possible.

ROOM FOR STUFF

Another consideration for a closer-to-full-time residence was storage. “One thing that gets jettisoned in storage” in many designs, Lenchek says. That’s

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PRENTISS + BALANCE + WICKLINE

not an issue in the remodeled cabin, which has plenty of room for all the necessities including recreational gear (there’s also a separate garage). The wellappointed kitchen — Mary enjoys cooking — looks neat and spiffy thanks to an array of custom cupboards that keep everything out of sight when not in use.

The screened sleeping porch, adjacent to the master bedroom, is a favorite addition. “We really love it,” Lenchek says. “We start using it in May. It’s like camping out with a bathroom down the hall.” In fact, the easy transition between inside and outside spaces is emphasized throughout the cabin — 16-foot-wide sliding doors (with screens) off the living room area help create that effect.

Other features are a sauna and outdoor shower. The second-level office space does double duty as a guest bedroom.

The original cabin included reclaimed wood from a water flume near Tonasket. Matching that wood for the remodel turned into a quest that led Lenchek to find similar boards in California. The home is built with Firewise standards in mind, to create a “defensible green space,” Lenchek says. Additionally, the Lencheks installed solar panels last fall that started operating in mid-October. “They should provide 100% of the house’s energy once I convert our gas boiler to electric this year,” Lenchek says. “This would be on an annual basis because they are grid tied without battery storage. The total system is rated 13.5KW. It was put together by Ellen Lamiman and installed by Bart Schuler and Pat Norwil, all locals, and they did a great job.”

Lenchek says the remodeled home is “done” and there won’t be any more additions, although there may be another outbuilding or two.

Meanwhile, the Lencheks have downsized to a condo in Seattle, and figure that between there and the Methow they have all the space they need. 

PHOTO COURTESY OF PRENTISS + BALANCE + WICKLINE

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