We fell in love with the Lapine House for many reasons. Principally, the house incorporates many smart building concepts. Its site and oversize windows ensure that sun floods some interior space during all daylight hours. Its gracious front porch offers shade during hot summer days, and shelter from inclement weather. Situated a block and a half from the center of the town, the porch fosters socialization with Essex residents and visitors alike. We believe that ecologically friendly communities emerge more readily in close-knit towns with consistent interaction amongst its members, and where commercial and residential priorities and concerns overlap because of their proximity. While working on the house and sitting on the front porch for breaks, we met nearly every person in the town. We received many compliments, but we also faced tough, thoughtful questions from concerned neighbors about the project. Any renovation in the town of Essex has a major impact on other homes and businesses, and we were pleased to see that Essex residents held us accountable for our actions. That experience served as a principle factor in choosing our new residence, also on Main Street several blocks north of the Lapine House. With a short walk to town and all its amenities, the Lapine House encourages its occupants to rely less on motorized vehicles, as does the very manageable front and back lawn which can be maintained with a small push mower. Inside the home, beautiful trim and hardwood floors, untouched since the turn of the century, were additional details that drew us to the Lapine House. The interior offers generously proportioned rooms that didn't necessitate any significant reconfiguration. Only two room entries in the house were closed and two new ones were added. One closet wall was removed to enlarge the master bath, and one wall was added in what was the kitchen pantry, to allow for a half bath downstairs. The existing door surrounds were painstakingly removed and relocated to the new locations. Minimal demolition and construction equates to economic and ecological savings. We believe that revitalizing beautiful old homes is the ultimate recycling initiative where the community, the environment and the home's occupants win.