A Franklin Lakes Estate brings the outside in with all the amenities of a private, luxurious oasis
by JENNIFER VIKSE • Photos By Wing Wong
This might well be the only home that can boast a combination of an interior tree, an indoor pool complete with waterfall, a water slide and tree house, plus an indoor basketball court, a gym with a view, four full-service bars, and a professional kitchen!
In placid Franklin Lakes, the home, finished in brick, is set back from the road, abutting the lake on 1.6 acres of serene forest. The beautifully manicured grounds flank a winding driveway which ends at this Collegiate Gothic-style structure.
Inside, unexpected amenities and grand interiors await, particularly since a complete renovation in 2011, including a three-story addition. Joe and Mike Costantin, principals with J. Costantin Architecture (JCA) of Morristown, NJ and New York City, happily took on the challenge of finding creative ways to bring the home—originally built in 1989—new life.
“The homeowner had high expectations and gave us a laundry list of requirements for the addition,” recalled Joe Costantin. “With the clients’ program in hand, we came up with the creative solution of incorporating almost the entire addition list into one theatrical three-story space. Since much of the existing basement walked out onto the lake, we immediately thought it would be a golden opportunity to put a pool on the basement level. It gave us an opportunity to have a huge vaulted ceiling space where you can walk out to the edge of a beautiful lake.”
“A house such as this arrives at this level of detail and finish only through coordination with a great builder and interior designer,” noted Costantin. “Roger Polo’s team at Polo Master Builders in Mendham and Laurie Finn and her team at La Jolie Maison in Summit equally share in making this project outstanding.”
The team chose to renovate the 14,700-square-foot house— which originally was lacking what the design team felt was grand appeal—in part because a zoning ordinance dictated that tearing the existing house down would have required it to move farther from the lake. The design and construction teams instead devised a plan to strip the house completely in the interior. “We have imaginative thinkers at JCA, and this client gave us a lot of latitude,” explained Costantin. “This house has been among the best ever to show our creative thinking. We also did a lot of things to update it.”
The team started from the bottom and worked its way up, completing all new windows, doors, and a slate roof. Interior designers Laurie Finn and Mary Divino (of La Jolie Maison) orchestrated the renovation of all nine bathrooms.
Many of the original spaces were reconceived, and with the new addition, the results are both breathtaking and unique. JCA retroactively designed the structure (such as widening the gallery and raising the upper level ceilings) without impacting the exterior.
The addition added over 4,000 square feet to the original house. The focal point around which everything springs is the pool inside the natatorium. The 800-square-foot pool is free-form and stretches from the inside to outside, with faux stone coping. (Water flows out under one of the retractable exterior doors into a smaller pool set into the patio.) Its vaulted ceiling is wide plank pine, supported by rough sawn bow-trusses made in North Carolina. The plaster and stone walls (complete with state-of-the art speakers) of this awe-inspired space incorporate foldaway glass doors that virtually disappear to create a seamless indoor/outdoor experience.
Perhaps the most impressive feature of the home is its tree house, located two stories above the pool.
“Interestingly, the tree house was not part of the original plan for the renovation; that spot was initially an octagon-shaped open loft with a guard rail,” explained Costantin. “This is how it came to fruition: we wanted to be very clear with our client about what this space was going to be like, and so we developed a 3D virtual finished model of the interior space to ‘walk’ through. There was an exterior octagon tower element at the left end of the house that looked out over the pond [and] way up in the trees. In one meeting we were showing the client how cool that platform was going to be, and we said it would be like standing in a tree house. Before we knew it, we all thought to make it into a real one. After all, this allows us to connect to the childlike wonder in all of us.”
The tree house—16′ x 16′—offers views of the lake outside, and incorporates its own flat-screen TV. It is finished with a Little Rascals-inspired “rickety looking door” and overlooks the waterfall.
The whole scene, under vaulted cathedral ceilings, is dreamscape-like.
“We went to great lengths to make it happen,” noted Costantin. Roger Polo of Polo Master Builders brought in a team of specialists who are consultants to the Walt Disney Company. At the core of the tree (which actually isn’t a tree at all) is a steel pedestal supporting eight cantilevered steel ribs that, in turn, support the tree house—wrapped with flexible metal fabric that was sculpted into the four-and-a-half foot diameter trunk. The artisans took moldings of the trees outside to create the faux bark, with leaves to match.
Within the natatorium is a gym with free weights and machines, a spa cave with a steam room and Jacuzzi, and a kitchen with custom cabinets finished in reclaimed wood, leather-like rain forest granite counter tops, and a rustic copper sink. Adjacent is a fireplace enveloped in chunky stone which houses both an indoor BBQ and a pizza oven. A saltwater aquarium finishes the functional yet fun space.
Also in the home’s new addition, a separately conditioned space one floor above the pool is the indoor basketball court—with a vaulted wood and beamed ceiling, industrial court lighting, floor-to-ceiling windows, a flat screen TV, and a waxed floor complete with a painted “key” and three point range marker.
A project like this requires the utmost in systems integration, noted Costantin. The home can have a number of critical systems controlled remotely from anywhere in the world via smart phone; including the boiler-driven radiant heating, cooling, humidification, natatorium dehumidification, plumbing, lighting, and security cameras. Utility bills are kept to a minimum by employing maximum values of foam insulation and outdoor set-back controls, and the level of soundproofing between the floors and rooms is considerable.
“As you would expect, the entire house has a state-of-the-art audio/visual system that creates a symphony for the senses at the flip of a button,” the architect added.
The main level of the estate is elegant, with windows making the most of its unique location on the water. There, Finn and Divino created a pallet of finishes and furniture in concert with the owner. The entry foyer is bright and clean with an iron lantern hanging from the ceiling and a round table sitting atop an Oriental rug on the wood floor (all the main rooms in the house have such handmade rugs). The great room beyond is an open two-story space with floor-to-ceiling windows offering breathtaking views of the 100-acre lake. A handsome custom bar and Bausman made of alder wood cabinetry constructed on site define the inviting space.
The dining room, off to the right of the foyer, is a tasteful balance of taupes, creams, and whites, finished with expert mill work, fabric, and lighting. Maple and walnut adorn the distant fireplace, which is surrounded by silk upholstered chairs. The dining table, with seating for ten, sits under a chandelier of lampshade-covered lights matching those on sconces around the room.
The kitchen, through frosted pocket doors, boasts Calcutta marble, limestone, walnut corbels, and reclaimed hand-hewn beams. Iron lanterns are suspended from the ceiling, while the white cabinetry and illuminated counters keep the space bright and inviting. There is a winding brick walled staircase dropping from the area to the wine cellar below, reminiscent of a secret passage in a European castle.
The family room, just adjacent to the kitchen, features a custom banquette and breakfast table and a hand carved limestone fireplace with a raised panel surround in walnut. Cozy fabrics cover the chairs and windows.
The study, highlighted by rich mahogany walls and a limestone fireplace, is accented by a Gothic inspired desk with an inlaid wood and stone top, a leather high-back chair, and accent chairs upholstered in burgundy. The arched windows are finished in plaid drapery.
The upper level—via a sweeping staircase accented with handmade wrought iron balusters— features five bedroom suites. The upper foyer overlooks the front parking court, the main level great room, and out to the lake, and can be shut off from below with secret built-in panels. One of the bedroom suites is an homage to train stations of days gone by, with a stained wooden booth and an actual working train set around the perimeter of the room (just a few inches from the ceiling), complete with running lights and simulated smoke.
The master suite offers a second story treetop view of the property and the picturesque lake beyond. The sitting room is warmed by a custom fireplace.
Accessed directly through a secret curved-door back entrance, the master bathroom is fit for royalty. Marble tile covers the floor, while walnut vanities adorn either side. His and her commode rooms have private sinks on either side of the step-in soaking tub, and the circular shower stall features multiple body sprays and shower heads. The master breakfast and coffee bar is equipped with refrigeration and dishwasher, evoking the feeling of a five star hotel. Two-story closets complete the suite. The surprising level above, tucked under the roof rafters, boasts a sitting room, a full bathroom in Carrera marble, and another bedroom with large windows overlooking the front entry court.
On the walk-out lower level of the house is a billiard room with a quarter-sawn oak coffered ceiling, a stone fireplace with rustic hand hewn mantle, and a full-service oak bar with seating for eight. Adjacent to this is a cigar room and wine cellar with Old World wooden doors with leather straps and Rocky Mountain hardware. Also on this level is a three-screen home theater with five reclining theater seats, a cushy sectional, and a two-tiered coffee table. Fabric panels inside the coffered ceiling coordinate with the suede-like fabric panels set in the walls. A 103-inch TV is flanked by two 60-inch screens, and can retract into cabinetry below.
Grounds include a putting green, a fireplace at the lake’s edge, plenty of space for outdoor living, and a fountain at the front and center of the round parking court at the front door. The lakeside outdoor serving area contains two built-in BBQ grills, refrigeration, prep counters, a sink, storage, and a retractable awning. The two-tiered countertop offers casual dining on bar stools. Over 2,000 square feet of blue stone patio offer ample space for entertaining. A large fire pit sits aside the outdoor kitchen overlooking the water.
In addition, an extensive blue stone space is accessible from the lower level, from the natatorium, and also via a limestone stairway. Several outdoor couches and chaise lounges allow guests to sit poolside or by another fire pit with views of the lake. This patio also provides easy access into the lower level cigar room, billiard room, and bar.
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