FEATURED WORK | North Arrow Architecture

ORONO RESIDENCE

Featured in Mpls.St.Paul Home & Design, Spring 2025

Location: Orono, Minnesota

Project Type: Remodeling/Addition

Photography: Spacecrafting (unless noted otherwise)

“Throughout the course of the remodel, I would say to Carl, ‘I need more nooks and crannies,’ and he would do it. I love the idea of turning the corner and seeing something unexpected. He and Nate Jurmu (Frontier Structures) latched onto the things that were really important for us all the way through.”

-Homeowner

The Backstory

After living in a former Orono farmhouse for more than 15 years, the clients were ready for a change. However, after looking at houses and lots for sale, they couldn’t find anything as beautiful as their own property, so they decided to re-think their home. After meeting with landscape architect Scott Ritter, architect Carl Olson and builders Nate and Tanner Jurmu of Frontier Structures, the clients decided to create the home they’d always wanted.

Design Goals:

Reorienting the home to create a more welcoming front entry on the street side
Creating a new attached garage and removing the existing garage to make room for a pool courtyard
Re-designing the owners’ suite to create a primary bath and larger closet
Adding a guest casita for visiting family and friends
Making the most of the natural light and bucolic views

“I remember Carl saying, ‘Having the restraints of a remodel forces you to do things
that are unexpected. And I love that, because I love oddities and personality in a house.”

-Homeowner

Design Solutions

Carl designed a welcoming covered porch on the street side. This gave the home a stronger sense of place and created a real sense of arrival. He also designed a stone-clad addition on the east side to help balance the visual weight of the new entry, which accommodates a great office and den.
Nate and Tanner Jarmu of Frontier Structures excavated under the existing family room and brought the garage into the lower level, creating space on the upper level for Carl to design a new kitchen with windows on three sides and a walk-out grilling patio.
By bringing the land up to the level of the old garage, Carl was able to design a new swimming pool and guest casita with bedrooms and a gym connected to the main house with a breezeway of sliding doors.
Carl re-designed the primary suite with a vaulted ceiling, views of the pool, a spacious bathroom with separate vanities, and a spa-like tub room and generous sauna with views of the wetlands.