One August 2013 Award Home Winner Lives in the White House

Chris Cooper and Ben Griffith sort of stumbled into their Southwood Park home. A little over 2 years ago, Chris and Ben were living downtown in West Central when they began to wonder about buying a home. “I was just curious to know what I could afford and what was out there,” Chris said. So he started looking online, and the white house at 3920 Tacoma caught their eye. “It’s that clean, crisp, farmhouse look that I like,” Chris said. Their Realtor planned out 5 or so homes for them to visit, but they knew the moment they walked in the living room that they had found the one.Chris’ background in architecture played heavily into their choice in neighborhood, along with the choices they continue to make as they renovate and decorate their new home. “I have this entire house drawn in 3D, down to the profile of the crown molding,” he admitted. They’ve wasted no time restoring the house to its former glory—rehanging the French doors they found in their garage, and reinstalling their porch railing, which was hiding in the attic.They’ve made dramatic improvements to their home’s curb appeal in the past few months, which included removing a cluster of porch-blocking bushes, and replacing them with some expertly-designed landscaping (thanks in part to their nursery-owning neighbors).That’s just the beginning of the long list of improvements Chris and Ben have made since moving in, and the list continues to grow. Chris has plans to repaint the house next year and add new shutters. “But I fell in love with a white house,” he said, “so a white house it will remain.”While the duo has long-term plans to move to the east coast, they don’t seem to be in too big of a rush. When asked about the previous owners, Chris said they’d lived there for over 30 years. “It says something about the neighborhood. It’s a place you come and stay.”-Kelly Benton