CENTENNIAL ROAD, Penn Valley, PA

This Mid-Century Modern home was designed in 1968 by Philadelphia architect Philocles Athopoulos for his own family. Arrival begins in a double-height glass vestibule, where a hand-carved wood entry door and a dramatic stair—its oak treads suspended from the ceiling by slender steel rods—set the tone for the craftsmanship within. As part of the renovation, we restored the original door, replaced its single-pane glazing with insulated glass, and refinished the stair treads to match the new oak flooring throughout the interior.

At the heart of the original plan was a large, indoor “courtyard,” sunken one step below the surrounding rooms. This central space featured vaulted ceilings, clerestory windows, a brick floor, and a fountain at its center. The home’s public spaces—the dining room, breakfast nook, and den—opened onto this communal courtyard, while the kitchen remained a small, enclosed room typical of the era.

In reimagining the house for contemporary living, we radically reworked this plan. Removing the fountain, the courtyard has become a generous central living room. The former den, with its expansive wall of windows overlooking the landscape, now serves as the dining room. The original dining room and breakfast nook were combined to create a larger, open kitchen connected directly to the new living space—reflecting the way families live today.

We continued the home’s material logic in the updated palette: the white marble floors in the perimeter rooms were carried into the new kitchen, while the new living room and dining room received white oak flooring. The kitchen’s walnut cabinetry complements the home’s existing woodwork and is paired with frosted-glass uppers and a scalloped green marble backsplash.

A secondary den space off the living room was refurbished by replacing the exisitng fireplace and creating a new assymetric surround with built-in walnut shelves and a floating steel mantle. The bedrooms and bathrooms were also refreshed with new flooring, fixtures, and finishes, completing a renovation that honors the home’s Mid-Century origins while transforming it for modern life. Like many homes of its era, the house suffered from minimal insulation. Wherever possible, we furred down ceilings to add insulation, replaced all single-pane glazing with insulated glass, and upgraded the mechanical system for significant improvements in energy efficiency.