NEW HAMPSHIRE HOME
"Traditional with a Twist"
The family-friendly renovation by architect Lisa DeStefano of DeStefano Architects in Portsmouth won two NEW HAMPSHIRE HOME Design Awards in 2017—one for Excellence in Remodeling/Renovation and the other for Home of the Year...
When Stefany Shaheen describes how she and her husband, Craig Welch, found their house on South Street in Portsmouth, she cites the children’s book The Best Nest. It’s the story of two nervous, new parent birds and their quest for the perfect place to raise a family.
“Ultimately, we were drawn to Portsmouth,” she recalls. “After all, we found ourselves driving there all the time for different activities. When we found the house on South Street, it seemed right, and we fell in love with the neighborhood. So, we made an offer.”
Even though Shaheen and Welch were unable to buy the house then, they waited. The couple were drawn to the neighborhood, in part, because they could walk from that home to the elementary and middle schools, the library, and nearby soccer and baseball fields. Not to mention the little playground directly across the street where, as it turned out, neighbors gathered around a makeshift water slide while a gaggle of kids played.
And so, when the house came on the market again, Shaheen and Welch bought it....