home of distinction
MEAGAN FORBES
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The interior aesthetic, inspired by Scandinavian minimalism, is at home with understated upholstered sectionals and sculpted wood fur-nishings
influenced by Australian designers.
NOT long after the 2019 closing, Tomaselli and Konrady met for the first time at 121 Live Oak Drive.
“I knew nothing about that house from its history perspective,” Konrady says. “Ross was there, and his mom was
there. They gave me a background of the house and explained what they wanted to do. It was a project that we all knew
was going to evolve.”
In January 2020, 121 Live Oak LLC was granted a permit for a $100,000 renovation. Not long after, the interior
demolition began.
“I’m really into historic buildings,” Tomaselli says. “History is something that can’t be replicated, just preserved.”
In the process of preserving the 1920s-era Shore Acres model home and retrofitting the interior for modern living for him and
his wife, Bryce, he was schooled on the challenges. Some of those hurdles were placed by the Town of Wrightsville Beach Planning
Department and its Historic Landmark Commission, which conferred landmark status for the property in 2007.
The commission mandated no exterior changes be made to the facade of the structure — inclusive of additions — but allowed
widespread changes to the interior. Originally, the living and dining rooms were separated by French doors. To accommodate the
couple’s desire for an open floorplan, the teammates dismantled the doors and set them aside to repurpose later.
Three additional structural beams were needed before interior walls could be removed. Those additions required the removal of
plaster walls and ceilings. The biggest surprise revealed two-by-eight ceiling joists and inlaid tongue-and-groove wood panels. Expos-ing
the original beams added volume to the interior. Authentic red oak floors were refinished.
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