“Luxury Beechwood townhouses offer buyers
a blank canvas”

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 26, 2004
By Gretchen McKay

It takes a lot of time and energy to maintain a single-family home, all the more if the property includes a yard. Little wonder, then, that some people opt for townhouses instead.

These row houses -- which usually share walls and common areas and are built in a uniform style -- take much of the headache out of home ownership. Someone else handles all the shoveling or mowing, and maintenance costs are typically restricted to the home's interior.

But what if you don't want an interior like everyone else's? Then Beechwood Commons, a new development by Walnut Capital in the heart of Squirrel Hill, may be your new home. Geared toward the upscale home buyer who knows exactly what he or she wants, each of the property's 12 luxury units will be customized to each buyer's living style and taste, from floor plan to finishes......

"It's 100 percent customization. We don't even pour floors," says Walnut Capital President Todd Reidbord. "You get an open canvas to start your design," using either your own architect and designer or the developer's.

As you might expect, such freedom of choice comes with a pretty big price tag: Basic shells start at $545,000, while fully built units -- which run about 4,000 square feet over four levels -- will cost at least $895,000.

The development's well-appointed model home, a three-bedroom, 3 1/2-bath unit at 1401 Beechwood Blvd., is listed at $1.3 million and is being marketed by Howard Hanna.

"This is an upper-end neighborhood, and we didn't want to do something less," says Reidbord.

Indeed, the developer worked hard to make sure the 2 1/2-story homes at the corner of Beechwood Boulevard and Wilkins Avenue blended in with many large, turn-of-the-century houses in the neighborhood. For instance, two brick colors were used, and the roof lines varied. Also, slightly different windows were installed in each of the four clusters.

Since the front doors of the units face an Italian-style interior courtyard, Walnut Capital also built the backs of the houses to look like fronts, with covered porches adorned with curvy wrought-iron rails and thick white pillars. The one-acre lot will be heavily landscaped and enclosed with a fence, according to managing partner Gregg Perelman.

Walnut Capital chose this property, the site of the former Darlington Nursery because it's "bullish on the city," Perelman says.

"This property is a gem, but it hadn't reached its potential," he says. "We felt we could do something that would complement the area."

Mission accomplished: With their graceful Georgian-style architecture and crisp white trim work, the townhouses are both elegant and stately and look very much in character.

Already, says Perelman, three of the 12 units have sold, including one to a retired steel executive who wanted a "comfortable" city residence that would not only be close to cultural events but would have enough room for visits from his seven children and 11 grandchildren.

"We wanted to be able to build to our preference," says the executive, who asked to remain anonymous.

While the executive chose a traditional-style interior, the three-bedroom middle model unit is furnished by Weisshouse in a sleek, contemporary style. But with its simple-lined Poliform cabinetry, whole-house Bose stereo system and stainless-steel gourmet kitchen, it is certainly comfortable.

Visitors enter the house at ground level, through the two-car garage, or can climb a small set of stairs to the front door. A paneled elevator off the garage holds up to 750 pounds and stops on all three upper floors.

A glass-paneled staircase leads to the first floor. The emphasis here is clean simplicity: The 10-foot-tall walls are devoid of molding, and the light maple floors are brightened by square European-style recessed lights. A wireless Lutron lighting system creates different lighting levels at the touch of a button; it also opens and closes the blinds on the casement windows overlooking the courtyard.

A powder room with Poliform glass cabinetry and a Kohler vessel sink set atop a black granite countertop lies to the right, just off the elevator.

The kitchen is equally striking. Natural cherry Poliform cabinets with sand-blasted glass fronts stretch all the way to the ceiling, providing an amazing amount of storage along with high style. On one wall, a five-burner Gaggenau cooktop crowned by an oversized stainless steel hood by Varenna stands next to double Thermador in-wall ovens and warming tray; another is graced with a stainless SubZero fridge and a built-in Miele espresso machine and Miele steamer. Stainless-steel counters make clean-up easy.

The breakfast room area opens up through French doors onto a large porch with brick floors overlooking Beechwood Boulevard. Lattice panels at either end ensure privacy from neighbors, while the curvy, wrought-iron railing adds a touch of style.

Another glass-paneled staircase leads to the second floor.

"We wanted to take advantage of the light and keep it flowing through the whole unit," explains Reidbord. "That way you feel like it's one big room."

The entire second floor serves as one large master bedroom suite, or what the developers refer to as "The Sanctuary." The floor-to-ceiling marble "Hers" bathroom, accessed through the master bedroom, features a sok overflowing bath by Kohler that's fed by a wall-mounted faucet along with a heated towel rack, a radiant-heated floor and a walk-in shower. The "His" bathroom is toward the rear of the house, at the end of a 16-foot-long closet with sliding Poliform doors. The bath boasts a walk-in steam shower with a rain shower head and built-in seat and seven separate jets.

The rear is divided into two rooms: a carpeted exercise room (which could easily be converted into another office or bedroom) and a small office/computer room. Both open onto a cozy seating area in the hall that is warmed by a gas fireplace.

The third or "loft" level features two more rooms and a Jack-and-Jill bath with a tub and two separate sink and toilet areas behind sliding doors. The space at the front of the house (the smaller of the two rooms) is set up as a family room; the second has two skylights and would make a sunny bedroom, sewing room or playroom.

The basement, finished with acid-stained concrete floors and a wooden ceiling, holds a large laundry room as well as a storage closet. A large rear room could serve as a wine cellar (all that's missing are the racks).

"There's so many possibilities," says Perelman.

The many luxurious touches extend to the outside. The concrete exterior porches, stairs, decks and driveways are equipped with a snow-melt system, so you never have to worry about slipping on ice. Each garage, graced with a 16-foot, raised-panel wood door, is also heated. A high-end security system (cameras are trained on both the front and back doors) keeps strangers at bay.

An added benefit: The city is currently offering a three-year tax abatement on all new construction in the city, so property taxes should be relatively low.

Correction/Clarification: (Published June 29, 2004) A story Sunday about Beechwood Commons in Squirrel Hill omitted the name of the architect, Susan Warner, and the general contractor, A. Martini.