Fontana Place is located a short drive from Baton Rouge in the rural community of Zachary, LA. This contemporary farmhouse is designed to establish place in the Acadian landscape, creating fields for family, harvest, play, and flood protection.
Project Name -Fontana
Studio Name -emerymcclure architecture
Project size– 4900 ft2
Completion date– 2020
Building Level – 1
Location– Zachary, Louisiana, United States
Photography– James Osborne IV
To keep it high and dry in the flood-prone prairie, the home sited atop a mound in the flat, 10-acre field. This slight elevation change creates organizational opportunities for clients who wish to develop their acreage, be self-sufficient and resilient, and raise their children.
The house sits back from the narrow country lane just far enough to make space for and overlook a front-yard grove of citrus trees. The double-peaked front facade protects a fenced backyard bracketed on one side with a wing of bedrooms and an outbuilding on the other. The yard and shed create space for family pets, wild and wooly children, a brood of chickens, raised planting beds, and manicured outdoor living space. A vegetable garden and composting yard lie just outside the fence. Beyond that is the terra viscus, perfect for frog catching, four-wheeling, muddy boots, and frolicking dogs.
Inside, the home is organized around a great room designed for living, playing, eating, and fireside chats on cold evenings. Long porches flank the great room, providing shaded outdoor living space and protection from intense eastern and western sun exposure.
The northern bedroom wing contains all the private spaces, while the southern wing includes all the home’s service spaces: a pantry, powder room, laundry room, garage, and the all-important greenhouse.
An offset of the south wing is an outbuilding containing a chicken coop and tractor garage. This architectural object holds the corner of the yard and delineates spatial boundaries for the raised bed herb garden and firepit area.
