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Home renovator salvages a vision of history

By Grace Hood, Special to the Rocky

Published August 15, 2008 at 3 p.m.
Updated August 18, 2008 at 9:51 a.m.

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Mick Barnhardt moved the kitchen in his house on Stout Street to the middle of the first floor, facing the dining area.

Marie Griffin © The Rocky

Mick Barnhardt moved the kitchen in his house on Stout Street to the middle of the first floor, facing the dining area.

Mick Barnhardt sits in his office off of the family room and laundry room in the house he's is currently restoring on Stout Street in Denver.

Photo by Marie Griffin © The Rocky

Mick Barnhardt sits in his office off of the family room and laundry room in the house he's is currently restoring on Stout Street in Denver.

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After a long day measuring traffic noise and mechanical equipment, you'd think Mick Barnhardt would look forward to a little quiet in the evening. But the acoustical engineer prefers the buzzing cacophony of power tools.

Having renovated four historic Denver homes, he's a self-taught expert in difficult interior and exterior remodel projects.

But when Barnhardt began his fifth project in April 2004, he found himself exercising skills he never would have equated with plumbing or electrical engineering: basic survival.

"It was disgusting in here; there were cockroaches," Barnhardt says of the 125-year-old house. "When I pulled off the baseboards, bricks would come tumbling down. I don't think I was aware until I started taking the house apart what bad shape it was in."

In short, the Second Empire-style home had fallen into a state of disrepair. The doors had colorful graffiti markings. Many of the windows were broken. The plaster walls were crumbling. A car without its wheels sat on the edge of the property.

And yet, Barnhardt saw promise.

"It's almost like a puzzle to figure out how to make an old house a functional new house," he says.

Barnhardt's vision paid off. Earlier this year, he won two Historic Denver Restoration for Living awards, one of which was the Grand Prize for overall renovations. Heather Quiroga, communications director for Historic Denver, says that renovations on historic homes can be challenging because of the long list of choices facing the homeowner.

Most important, the homeowner must decide which historic items can be salvaged and repaired, and which require an update for modern living.

"The winner is acknowledged for their hard work and their thoughtful choices, because with every cabinet and piece of hardware, there are choices to make," she says.

After deciding on a new floor plan, Barnhardt gutted the interior, with the help of friends.

As with the four other homes he's remodeled, Barnhardt threw a "Demolition Party," providing food, drink and a Dumpster. He and his friends cleaned the place out in about five hours.

"Demolition is something that doesn't require any skill," says the Denver native. "If you can do it all at once and it's a party, it's fun."

For many years, the house had been divided into two apartments: upstairs and downstairs. Barnhardt got rid of the small maze of rooms that confined each floor, joining the upstairs and downstairs into a single-family home.

"These older homes don't lend themselves to contemporary living," says Barnhardt, 47. "Their layouts have smaller rooms and closets. The kitchen is usually tucked in the back of the house.

"One thing I like about the house now is to be able to stand in the front and see all the way to the back."

The first floor is a long, rectangular space with an open living room that flows into the dining area and kitchen space. A cozy family room at the back of the house is separated by two sets of old mahogany French doors, which were purchased at an antique auction.

Early on, Barnhardt decided to move the kitchen from the back of the house to the middle.

"It just makes sense in contemporary living," he says. "The kitchen is the core of the house."

Complete with cherry-stained cabinets and granite countertops, the kitchen is set apart from the dining area by an island, which has a built-in stove top. Hanging light fixtures illuminate the island, creating a partition between the kitchen and dining area. The nearby dining table sits beneath a one-of-a-kind antique chandelier, which once lit an old Midwestern movie theatre.

Throughout the first floor, Barnhardt uses black woodwork to contrast the exposed brick and plaster walls. In the family room, a cherry-stained maple entertainment center, bamboo flooring and built-in black wooden shelving create the feeling of a downtown loft. Barnhardt uses wainscoting from the bathrooms and the kitchen to create an accent along one of the family room walls.

"I like to reuse stuff, but not in the same context," he says. "I try to salvage as much of the house as possible."

In what is perhaps the most unique repurposing of an old item, Barnhardt refurbished a large return-air grate from the house, which is used decoratively on the front of the kitchen island. The grate's intricate wire pattern is framed by the predominant colors on the first floor: black and cottage red.

The original staircase still connects the two floors of the house. An Amish carpenter rebuilt half of the spindles in the banister, an ebony and cottage-red affair highlighted by white steps.

Upstairs, Barnhardt configured the floor plan to allow for three bedrooms and two bathrooms, including a master bedroom and bathroom suite. White woodwork and plaster walls lend a more modern feel to the second floor.

"The black contrasts so well with the brick downstairs, and I didn't have any brick upstairs," he says. "I wanted something brighter."

Refinished wide-plank, knotty-pine flooring lends a warm glow to the second floor.

A master bedroom and bath are tucked at the back of the house. Barnhardt built three large closets for the master bathroom. A refurbished claw-foot tub and a corner sink from the 1910s lend a bit of history to the room, while the glass shower door and other modern amenities give a nod to contemporary living.

Now that he's finished with the interior renovations, Barnhardt has sights set on the outside. He's working on a wraparound porch, and eventually hopes to build a two-car garage.

The process of getting to know a dwelling by stripping it down to its bare bones and uncovering its inner beauty drives this enthusiast to finish his projects.

"I look at houses as living beings," he says. "I feel like when I'm finishing a house, it's smiling back at me."

Details

* What: Second Empire-style home in Curtis Park

* Size: 2,200 square feet; 3 bedrooms, 3 baths

* Cost: $185,000 in 2004; cost of construction: $100,000

* Major elements of the renovation: Master bedroom/bathroom suite on the second floor. Kitchen moved from the back to the middle of the first floor.

Comments

  • August 16, 2008

    5:53 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    Oh_Wise_One writes:

    Grace- where is the "basic survival" in this home renovation piece? I was waiting for the Crips to shoot up the place, or the roof to collapse where he was trapped for days and had to cut off his arm......

  • August 16, 2008

    9:51 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    WeBelongToEachOther writes:

    I first saw this article in the printed paper and it said that there are more before-and-after photos of the project in a slideshow at RockyMountainNews.com/extras. I have checked and did not find any such slide show. This has happened before with other articles. Very frustrating...

  • August 16, 2008

    12:52 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    Ynkydoodle writes:

    Ditto. Where's the before and after photos? Slideshow?

  • August 16, 2008

    5:19 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    jmstewart writes:

    This is the first time I have gone online for extras to a story. We are renovating a 120 year old house and I had hoped to see more photos. I am very disappointed!

  • August 17, 2008

    12:41 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    marinmale writes:

    Yeah, it would be great to see some more photos of this online!

  • August 18, 2008

    5:44 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    kcbrown writes:

    The photos in the paper sent me here. They looked so good, I was looking forward to more.

  • August 18, 2008

    10:46 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    MManley writes:

    The link for the slideshow is: http://cfapp2.rockymountainnews.com/p...
    They're awesome pictures!