A Peek Inside John Gasperetti’s New House

Photos by Gordon King

John Gasperetti never imagined he’d find his dream house at 9:30 at night.

After living for 30 years in a gracious, 1911 three-story colonial on 16th Avenue, Gasperetti and Brad Patterson decided it was time to downsize to a one-level house that hopefully offered a view of the Yakima Valley. They thought a little land would be nice as well, but didn’t want to live too far from Gasperetti’s restaurant near downtown or from his floral design store on 40th Avenue.

After several months of looking with no dream house in sight, fate smiled on Gasperetti in March 2007, when Joanne Almon and her husband, Bill, dropped into his restaurant for dinner. Almon took Gasperetti aside and said, “I think I’ve found a house for you.”  In his excitement, he asked her if he could see it right away.

She joked, “Can I finish my dinner first?”

That night, Almon first took Patterson up to the Scenic Drive home that had just been put on the market.  After taking a look, Patterson quickly called Gasperetti and urged him to come up and see the house.

“When I walked in…I immediately thought ‘This will work’,” Gasperetti remembered fondly.  “Then I stood in the corner of the living room and saw the view looking over the city through the back window, and I felt the house had a wonderful, warm and friendly atmosphere,” he added. “We bought it that night.”

In the light of day they discovered that the 40 year-old, Frank Lloyd Wright inspired house came with two fantastic views.  Set on a small hillock, the view from the expansive front lawn looks south on the city of Yakima.  From the north-facing kitchen and patio, a more countrified view of orchards, Garretson Grade, Gleed and Mt. Clemens unfolds.  And best of all, the layout of the house fulfilled the pair’s criteria: one level with two bedroom wings and plenty of room in between to entertain.

Local retired architect Ron Cameron designed the house for Dr. Frank Lecocq and his family.  Cameron admits that over his career he didn’t design many private homes, sticking with more commercial projects like the original Chalet Mall shopping center on Summitview Avenue.

“When you’re young, you think you have to do a contemporary design,” Cameron explained.  “I worked at taking advantage of the 360-degree view in every room.  I think I spent most of my time in the living room on the high beamed ceiling and forcing the view from the large, plate-glass windows.”

The house remained almost completely unchanged from when it was finished in 1968, so once the closing papers were signed, Gasperetti and Patterson began the difficult task of updating it.  Armed with Cameron’s blueprints, they started assessing what they needed to do.

“We were determined to update floors, bathrooms and countertops and improve the energy efficiency of the house, without compromising the integrity of the original design,” Gasperetti said.

Acting as their own contractor, they enlisted the help of Randy LaPierre, who has done extensive remodeling over the years for Gasperetti’s restaurant.  They used local companies to provide the materials, windows and woodwork.  Denise Van Horn, interior decorator for Standard Paint, worked alongside Gasperetti and Patterson to pick out floor tiles, carpets, countertops, laminates and kitchen tiles.

“I think the house has a very organic feel with the orchard at the back. It’s very compatible with the outside environment,” Van Horn said.   “And the neutral palate makes a perfect backdrop for their collection of regional artwork and antique furniture.”

The laminate kitchen counter was replaced by a Caesarstone quartz surface.  King Brothers built the new kitchen cabinets that are faced with Italian laminate.  Circular glass tiles in tones of gray and black on the backsplash carry out the neutral color scheme.

They recycled the original kitchen cabinets, using them in the remodeled laundry room, and a recycled marble countertop ended up in Gasperetti’s bathroom.

They replaced many of the windows to increase the energy efficiency of the structure.  As an added bonus, by enlarging the 18-inch windows in the east wing, they flooded the bedrooms with light and provided a striking view.  French sliders were also installed, opening up the small formal dining room and the north and south walls of the kitchen, thus opening up the heart of the house.

The biggest decision they had to make concerned the small kitchen and adjacent family room.  Over the years Gasperetti and Patterson have teamed up to donate dinners to benefit charity auctions for countless local organizations they support, such as Yakima’s Rotary clubs, Children’s Village and the Yakima Valley chapter of the American Red Cross.  The original house lacked a large space for dining and entertaining.

After much contemplation, they decided to enclose the front-facing covered patio off the kitchen and take down the adjoining wall to the family room, instantly creating a beautiful, airy great room, perfect for a large dining table, sitting area with a cozy fireplace, and full view of the magic happening in the kitchen.

Gasperetti admitted, “When we opened up the kitchen, I felt the house was finally my home.”

When the move-in date arrived, Gasperetti found fitting his furniture and artwork into the contemporary setting was like putting pieces together in a complicated puzzle. Surprisingly, a large floor-to-ceiling Victorian gilt mirror that once held court on the landing of the grand staircase of his old house, fit perfectly tucked into a corner of the formal dining room.  The beige couches, antique side tables, grand piano and large vintage Leo Adams painting gave the living room a surprising contemporary sophistication without seeming fussy.  A Nell Scott wool wall hanging that had been featured at the 1970 Tokyo World’s Fair fit perfectly on the foyer wall opposite the home’s original Phil Kooser carved front door.  Other artists’ work featured throughout the home are a large modern oil by Charles Smith, a vintage light fixture by Seattle artist Irene McGowan, and an oil painting by Delma Tayor.

Once the inside started taking shape, they tackled the outside of the house.  Fortunately, they hired Gerard St. Martin, son of the home’s original stone mason.  As a young man he had worked as a hod carrier on the home’s construction.  Now, working with his own sons, he laid a welcoming stone walkway.   The back patio needed updating as well, and after elevating it to lay flush with the kitchen’s back door, the masons created an inviting patio that functions as an outdoor dining room for enjoying Yakima’s summer produce and its incredible sunsets.

St. Martin also created a smaller front patio that has become a perfect spot for breakfast.  Ironically St. Martin still had some of the rock used in the house’s siding, so it’s almost impossible to tell that the new outside wall has undergone a remodel.  The rock was also used in remodeling one of the shower walls in Patterson’s bathroom, tying in with the organic theme of the house.

Like any older home, there are still small projects to be done and landscaping to be finished, but for John Gasperetti and Brad Patterson, they have found a little bit of quiet country living right here in the city.