A Lifelong Dream: Addition Expands House in All the Right Ways

Leslie Simmons fell in love with her house when she was a young girl. "I remember sitting in the little living room, drinking Brown Cows and watching TV," she says. "There was something about this house. I always wanted to live here."

At the time, Leslie was a guest, visiting the grandmother of a friend. But when Leslie was in her 20s, she was able to return to the house, first as a renter, then as the owner. Now, nearly 25 years later, she's lived in her Quarry Heights home longer than she lived in the house where she grew up.

Given her attachment to the structure, it was difficult to contemplate a renovation. "I had done things myself, over the years, but the thought of somebody tearing down solid plaster walls made me hesitate," she says.

A stronger urge, however, was that the house be a gathering place for her two sons, ages 9 and 14, and their friends. Since the boys were growing, the house needed to as well. Enter Kerry Bramon.

"I didn't need to talk with anyone else," she says. "I went to school with Kerry and his wife, Becky, and I know they're good, decent people. Kerry's grown up here, he's been in business for years, and he's here to stay."

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