When you take on a full gut historic renovation you never know what you’ll find once you ‘open it up’. Over the years we’ve seen everything imaginable that is every renovator’s worst nightmare including squirrel and bat infestations and rotting studs encased with mold to non-compliant plumbing and electrical systems that require full replacement.
Luckily, when David Baglino, developer and owner of Wasatch Engineering Contractors Inc. in Park City, Utah gutted his latest historic property his house gave him a gift—old, faded Valentine’s Day cards that he suspects were hidden there by one of the property’s first owners.
Originally built in 1910, this vintage downtown Park City miner’s cabin has been taken down to the studs by the competent hands of Kevin Horn of Horn and Partners Architecture and Wasatch Engineering Contractors. Impeccably-restored into the epitome of modern luxury steps from the heart of the Sundance Film Festival, the home preserves the original one-of-a-kind architectural elements that connect Park City to the Old West’s Gold Rush past.
Completing this project in eleven months was no small feat. David and his team gutted the entire interior and completely re-built and restored the walls including the existing double lap wood exterior from the outside in. They re-framed all of the walls and utilized a commercial grade closed-cell polyurethane spray foam that resulted in an R-value of 32 for the walls and R-48 for the roof, which lends to the home’s airtight energy-efficiency and exceptional acoustic qualities. David also raised the house to accommodate 9-foot ceilings in the newly added finished basement.
Past the welcoming great room you’ll find an exquisite floating staircase, a gourmet chef’s kitchen, and a modern metal-clad addition in back that contrasts with the original wood siding and would make even the most discriminating modern interior designers from Los Angeles or Manhattan swoon.
Outside, there’s room for relaxation and entertaining guests on the deck and patio with expansive mountain and ski slope views. Walk out your back door onto Main Street and your backyard is the bustling heart of downtown Park City steps from the town ski lifts, the Sundance Film Festival, and some of the finest shopping and restaurants of any ski town in the US.
The home’s developer David is no stranger to renovating historic properties and is currently working on five other Park City historic renovations with architect Kevin Horn. It’s a standard flipper’s cliché that developers don’t care about the details, but David and his team are the rare exception who pay attention to the finest details both on the interior finishes and the energy-efficiency of the exterior design. The next custodian of this vintage home will be the beneficiary of their thoughtful craftsmanship and awareness of modern buyer’s sensibilities.
Oh, and about those Valentine’s Day cards that were discovered in the walls during David’s renovation. They are now on display in glass frames on the walls of the home and they convey with the sale of the property to the new owners. Although this home is move-in ready in our opinion, perhaps the new owners will make changes of their own and leave a time capsule for future owners to discover when they open up the walls.
FEH Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on Inman and the property is currently listed for $2,895,000 by Paul Benson of Engel & Voelkers Park City.
