The owners purchased a single family detached house in a row of identical houses, 12 feet apart along a suburban street overlooking the Potomac River. They had two principal requirements: more useable outdoor space and a maintenance-free exterior. Our solution was to cut a new structure diagonally through the remains of the original forming semi-enclosed courtyards on either side and a substantial garden to the rear. The original brick walls form the new courtyards and enclose as well the entry and kitchen. Within the new linear block owners’ spaces are to the front and guest accommodations to the rear; a central circulation area is two stories high and skylighted. To the owner’s delight the entire house is jacketed with impervious lead-coated copper, “I will never have to climb a ladder again!”.