It's a Wrap

After three years of renovations, many changes are evident. The addition of a porch to the street-facing side of the house allowed a drastic change to the roof line. The gazebo was originally planned as a detached structure, but the decision to incorporate it into the porch was never regretted. CHRISTOPHER BROOKS PHOTOS
From vernacular to Victorian, details give 120-year-old home new vitality
Back in early 2020, my girlfriend, Connie Maggi, and I got the idea to move from Gainesville to Titusville where she grew up. I had dreamt of living on the waterfront, across from the Space Center with all the rocket launches. Connie’s mother, who still lives in Titusville, told us about a 1904 house on Indian River Avenue with a “for sale by owner” sign in front. It had a beautiful river view and 120 years of history, which we planned to enhance after we acquired it. We knew this would involve adding, restoring, renovating, preserving and modernizing. But we also realized it was a true, late-Victorian gem that deserved to be reborn, complete with a look that reflected its core of authenticity. This is the final installment in our chronicle of that quest.

Being local, our metal worker was able to make frequent visits to check measurements and precisely fit each section of fence.
Move to the Space Coast: This was my girlfriend, Connie, and I’s mission, as we would venture from Gainesville — where we lived — over to the coast, for the weekends. I wished to find waterfront property to happily retire to; Connie needed to move closer to Titusville, where she was raised and where her nonagenarian mother, Isabel, still lived.
We spent days traveling up and down the roads that hug the shores of the Indian River, in search of vacant land or a house that could be modified to our liking. Would we find it? The prospects were not looking good until Isabel called about a house on the Indian River with a “for sale by owner” sign outside. Coincidentally, that owner was an Astronaut High School classmate of Connie’s.
Alfred W. Lee and his family had moved into the house he built in 1905. We saw it; we loved it; we bought it.
Fast forward three years, four articles, a thousand decisions later, and here we are. We set out to take this house — which had been there to witness the birth and development of the American space program — and make it a testament to the evolution of building design and technology. Something Lee could not have imagined. Yet we would give it an unmistakably Victorian look, while preserving its original vernacular roots. The road to this goal was filled with delays, frustration and occasional miscommunication, as well as a sense of accomplishment when each hurdle was cleared. Would we do it again knowing what we know now? I’ll answer that later.
In four prior articles, I went into our vision for this house. It included a downstairs master suite, a space that could be used as a dance floor or gym, and a parlor and a dining room where the Victorian-era Lee family would feel at home. With these items checked off our list, we could turn our attention to the exterior. This included the porch, fences and driveway gates on the street side, along with the terraces and railing on the river side.
PORCHES

Heavily modified from the original more rustic look, the decor of the dining room and parlor were inspired by the late Victorian era in which the house was built by Alfred W. Lee for his family.
The original house had a very simple look with large wraparound porches — most of which had either been eliminated, or enclosed and incorporated into the interior. The only remaining porch section faced our neighbors on the south side, where the main entry is located. The street view is actually the side of the house, which had a very plain appearance. To improve its curb appeal, we decided to wrap the remaining porch remnant and run it the length of the street side.
We had originally envisioned a free-standing gazebo but later realized that it would be much more useful to tack one onto the end of the porch. This created a much more interesting roof line: a hexagonal cone with a copper cap would be placed over the gazebo section of the porch. The area over the relocated steps would be gabled.
FENCES
Another factor that was key to improving curb appeal would be the fences. They needed to go with what would be a very Victorian-looking house in the background. We opted for a “wrought iron” — actually aluminum — fence, framed within brick columns and base wall. Having dismantled the nonfunctional original chimney and the remaining fireplace, we had the bricks. These 125-year-old Chicago bricks had an aged patina or were blackened by decades of exposure to smoke. Their mottled appearance could not be reproduced with modern brick.
Bill Smith of Space Coast Masonry did a masterful job of attaching the brick sections and creating a 19th-century look. We wanted the metal portion of the fence to be aesthetically elaborate, which meant it had to be custom made. Finding the right craftsman to accomplish this in the 21st century was not easy. We looked as far away as Miami to find someone with the skills the job called for.
We found that person practically in our own backyard. John Meister, of Meister Metal in the historical district of Titusville, had the craftsmanship and attention to detail that served our project well. The decorative scroll work on the gates and stair handrails created a look we have yet to see surpassed — save Buckingham Palace.

Unlike today, in the 1800’s the land between the river and the houses along it was terraced and used as a public walkway. NORTH BREVARD HISTORICAL MUSEUM
TERRACES

Now terraced, the river side of the house will be used to grow citrus trees, vegetables and herbs.
The house sits almost 20 feet above the waters of the Indian River Lagoon. When we bought the house, there was a tall wall with steep stairs that dropped from the pool deck to the ground below. Although reassuring when it comes to storms and potential flooding, it made for a very abrupt transition. We liked the idea of a measured, terraced progression that would incorporate a more gradual stairway. Our landscape architect, Ryan Pollack, designed a three-level curving terrace system. Again, our mason, Bill, fashioned the tricky, curved-block retaining walls. They were then covered with concrete that was press molded to give it a stacked stone appearance. The sections at each level would provide level ground for planting. Overlooking it all would be the pool deck, edged with glass railing so as not to obstruct any of the views from the house.
FINAL TOUCHES
All the major pieces were now in place. The relatively minor touches that remained would, nevertheless, have a marked impact on the overall look of the house. The landscaped areas were planted to resemble a Victorian garden. We met with a consultant to select plants that resembled what one might find in a British cottage garden but would survive in the Florida climate.
We wanted the pathway through the garden — leading from the paved driveway to the walk-through gate — to have an aged appearance. In the 18th century, brick paving was made using broken pieces of brick referred to as “brickbat.” Again, we were able to utilize our fireplace brick to do just that. Set on a section of this brickbat surface would be a bench, just under a Victorian era streetlight. All of these elements came together to create a feeling of a park setting.
As for the house itself, functional colonial shutters and spindled handrails supported by porch columns painted with accent color bands were added. These features helped give it an almost dollhouse appearance.

The renovated first-floor dining room has its own Victorian charm.
As we approached the final touches phase, tragedy struck. The person whose can-do attitude was the force behind it all suddenly passed. Jerry Knerr, our project manager and part owner of Titan Construction, died just two days after his 39th birthday. This was a setback in so many ways. His loss was sorely felt not only professionally, but personally. He was a man of integrity and great insight who never seemed to see problems, only solutions. We appreciated his sincere efforts to create our vision. Jerry loved the water and our Victorian home project as much as we did. In memory of him, we planted a desert rose, his favorite flower, to always face the water. We are sure he would have been proud of the result to which he so heavily contributed.
So, getting back to the question of whether or not we would do it again. When we started this project, we naively thought it would take six months to a year. During much of the past three years we have had half a house to live in. A port-a-potty and a dumpster sat in a driveway that much of that time looked like we leased it to the Air Force to use as a bomb testing site. Then there was the water intrusion, during the two hurricanes of 2022. There was also the raccoon who took up residence in the roof soffit, and the river rat that got in the house and snuck into the kitchen for nighttime snacks.
Despite all this, I think we would do it again. But — without going into detail — we would do some things differently. That always seems to be the case with a project this complex. In the end I guess we must be philosophical about it all. As they say, “It might take a year; it might take a day; but what’s meant to be will always find its way.” It found its way — and we love our Victorian home.

Christopher Brooks
I am originally from Canada but was raised in South Florida. I received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Florida and trained in medicine at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI. I am board certified in Internal Medicine and Wound Care and spent the majority of my medical career doing primary care at a state run facility in Gainesville, FL. I am now retired.