When Hunter Johnson first saw the land—proposed as the site of a new dream house—it didn’t exactly look like a dream locale.
“There was an abandoned home on the lot, which was so completely overgrown that you couldn’t even make your way through it— it was infested with thick bamboo,” says Johnson, CEO and founder of TONO Group, a family of full service architecture and construction companies.
Still, he could see the vision of his clients Travis and Jacquie Eby, who became his friends through the homebuilding process. The 3-acre lot sloped down to the Conestoga River and offered Lancaster city skyline views. Remediation would be needed to prepare the property and give it a clean slate—clearing the way for a mod lodge.
"A lot of times people think of contemporary homes as cold, but this one is warm and open—not a cold, modern home."
A vision with a vista
Travis Eby had visions of the Rocky Mountains in his mind. Inspired by trips out west to Colorado lodges, he wanted to bring that sense of wide open spaces and natural materials, framed by nature, to his new Lancaster home. It would be a contemporary, modern Lancaster lodge—a mod lodge.
“As architects, we pull together the owner’s vision,” says Kyle Solyak, TONO Group’s Director of Architecture and Mod Lodge's Project Architect. “The property sits nicely on a bend in the river—you can see both upstream and downstream—so one of the first questions was how we positioned the house and the spaces within to take advantage of the views.”
It required some imagination—and ingenuity.
“Once the site was fairly cleared, we took a lift out to the site, got on it with the owner, and moved it around—raising and lowering it where we envisioned each floor level,” says Johnson. That helped pinpoint the future home’s exact location and orientation. In the distance, they could see Lancaster icons—the Marriott and Griest Building. It’s not exactly a Rocky Mountain high, but it’s a gorgeous Lancaster County hillside.
Going vertical
Today, it’s hard to imagine the landscape without the 9,000-square-foot home, because they flow together so naturally. The front of the home, streetside, appears to be a lovely two-story home. But the back of the home is a dramatic, three-story cascading series of windows overlooking the river and city views, framed by greenery.
“As soon as you step in the front door, you can see a panoramic vista, through the back of the home, to the views beyond,” Solyak says.
It’s hard to tell whether that sightline, or the home’s vertical lines, are the stars of the show.
“There’s a monumental fireplace with a giant chimney as a central anchoring element you see once you walk in the front door,” says Johnson. The chimney measures 18 feet wide and spans all three floors of the home.
Another striking vertical line is the three story staircase that Johnson describes as “a tower element.” That’s because in addition to connecting all three floors, it brings light into the home—in a big way.
With the main living space on the main floor, the master suite above, and the family room below, “they’re all stacked in a tower, with panoramic views through glass,” Johnson describes.
That staircase is “like a light tunnel,” says Solyak. And talk about solar gains.
“One of nice things about the staircase is, the windows stretch three-quarters of the height, for nice morning light. Operating windows act as a ventilating chimney but also extend the spring and fall seasons. There’s so much natural ventilation, and the staircase acts as a chimney—allowing the hot air to rise, and taking advantage of solar gains in the winter,” Solyak explains.
He designed large overhangs on the roofs to provide sun and weather protection, while using the open glassed areas to take advantage of lower sun angles, light, and that luxurious lodge feel.
Authenticity and natural beauty shines through the home.
“The intentional design detailing conceals mechanical infrastructure while the exposed timber framing is expressed as a significant part of the architecture,” Solyak explains.
The main living space is the home’s central gathering space. It’s designed to be a multi-season room, where all the windows can be removed, so that open air can flow seamlessly in and out of the home, blending indoor and outdoor living.
It flows into the large, light kitchen with a huge island, and outward into porch areas that further extend into a tumbling series of outdoor patio spaces. And it’s hard to call the bottom floor family room a basement because its airy feel defies the typical definition and stereotype.
Four bedrooms, in addition to the master suite, are stacked on the home’s end, opposite of the kitchen. Each has its own separate bathroom and walk-in closet—and each one has a unique vantage point on the riverside.
“We used as many natural materials as could be found,” says Johnson. “From timber framing components to steel, glass, and stone—that’s what gives the home its modern lodge-like feel. A lot of times people think of contemporary homes as cold, but this one is warm and open—not a cold, modern home.”
One of the complex challenges was designing a heating and cooling system for a home this large, with multiple exposures at different levels. Johnson credits several Lancaster County partners for helping them pull off the project—heating contractor One Hour Heating, and siding material provider Eby Exteriors—no relation to the homeowner; just a fun coincidence.
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Finishing touches
“The overall skin of the building is timeless,” says Angelique Miller, TONO’s Interiors Director. “The interior space is a combination of the lodge feel with modern touches, trying to figure out how you marry those two aesthetics together became our design challenge.”
A neutral color palette inside the home is key to letting the natural beauty and seasonally-changing colors outside, shine through the windows.
“It’s almost like they wanted the home to be neutral, so the view was the accent,” Miller explains. “The color palette is a combination of the warm wood tones on the floors, offset with cooler gray on the walls. It’s a range of grays from white to dark—almost black. White almost becomes the accent color—that pop of color.”
Modern, clean lines in the white and gray kitchen—and a fun backsplash tile—are tied into the lodge-like home via the wood floor as an anchor.
Because the interior spaces are so neutral, the homeowner can easily add color accents by changing out furniture over the years. And there are a few surprises—a playful black and white floor in the laundry and pantry area, and an adjacent powder room with what Miller describes as “really wild wall covering.”
The homeowners wanted a focal point in the stairway, so Miller custom-ordered a modern chandelier featuring a dozen staggered pendant light fixtures with milk glass and silver matte finish. Attached to the ceiling above the stair tower, it dangles eight feet below, and is showcased through a large window at night.
“To me, it’s the vacation home I’d love to go stay in,” Miller summarizes. “Everything about it is calming, relaxing, and peaceful.”
And it’s designed to last a lifetime—and beyond.
“It takes you out of the norm of everyday living, and is something purely custom to the homeowners and designed to be a legacy home—the spot where the family gathers,” says Solyak. “As a company, we try to show how architecture and the spaces you live and work in impact your daily lives. We can aspire to something beyond the typical run-of-the-mill suburban home.”
What makes a home a “dream home?”
“For us, it’s the owners,” Johnson says. “Experientially for them, it’s the view and the location, but for us, a dream home is a dream project and having dream clients. We continue to work with them on business projects and we’ve become good friends in the process—that’s the best part.”