Frank and Anne Parcells House

People: Paul Rudolph

Date: 1970

City: Grosse Pointe

Michigan State Historic Preservation Office, photo by Rob Yallop.

The house at 3 Cameron Place in Grosse Pointe was constructed in 1970 for Frank H. Parcells, his wife, Anne, and their five children. Desiring a contemporary design for their new home, the Parcells attended numerous open houses in the western Detroit suburbs and conducted research to hone in on their architectural likes and dislikes. Acting on a friend's recommendation, they contacted and eventually selected architect Paul Rudolph for the commission.

 

The Parcells' program for the new house included five bedrooms on multiple levels, an office with a separate entrance, views of Lake St. Clair from the kitchen and living room, and "lots of wood." Although the Parcells' home would be one of the first constructed in the new subdivision, they were sensitive to the fact that they would be inserting a contemporary design into a neighborhood that consisted largely of traditional Colonial and Tudor-inspired residences. The lakefront property's location at the end of a cul-de-sac and its abundance of trees created a somewhat isolated setting and worked well to buffer the house visually from the rest of the neighborhood. Construction of the residence proved to be a challenge for local builders. Ultimately they prevailed and the Parcells moved into their new home in January 1970.

 

The Parcells House is located in an affluent neighborhood in Grosse Pointe. The lake-front property is located at the extreme southern end of Cameron Place, and the house is sited in the center of the lot. Landscaping consists of a manicured lawn on the lake side of the property to facilitate views of the water from the house, while the rear, or street-side of the property, is heavily planted with large trees and bushes to provide privacy. The lot is accessed by a narrow drive extending from the end of the cul-de-sac. The house is barely visible from the public right-of-way. The three-story residence is sculptural in its form. The south elevation facing the water consists of a series of box-like projections, differing in size and shape and infilled with walls of glass. The tripartite window walls are recessed within the "boxes" and are divided by heavy muntins with a light-colored spandrel panel below. A porch supported by wide wood columns projects from the center of the elevation. The entire building is clad with horizontally oriented redwood boards painted dark brown. The north-facing elevation is made up of similar projecting boxes, however, there is much less glazing present. The boxes extend further from the central mass of the structure on this elevation. The extensions include two offset single car garage bays. The design of the Parcells House resembles that of Rudolph's seven level beach house in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, from 1962.

 

The Parcells House is the only residence in Michigan designed by renowned architect Paul Rudolph.