Villa Linda is the perfect name for this exceptional five-bedroom, 8,700-square-foot, single-story Tuscan residence. Perfect because “linda” means “pretty” in Spanish—and this home is indeed pleasing to the eye—but also because homeowner Bobby Gross just happens to have a lovely wife named Linda.
This award-winning residence is a prime example of how initial architectural designs can be modified and customized to fit a family’s lifestyle. The exterior of Villa Linda has a more formal Tuscan look, with stone walls, tiled roof and an arched wooden doorway.
A major asset of this special home is that it is very green—not the color, but ecologically green—which is critical in building cost-effective and energy-efficient structures today. Among other things, its small environmental footprint is due to tankless gas water heaters, an Icynene insulation system, heat pumps with the highest SEER (Service Energy Efficiency Rating), double-insulated and impact-resistant windows, an automated lighting control system and whole-home air and water filtration systems. Yet all this high technology, while giving the homeowners a comfortable and economical lifestyle, is virtually invisible and does not detract from the comfort and beauty of the home’s design.
Crossing the threshold is like entering another world—first into a two-story tower-like foyer with walls of concrete block clad with stone and punctuated by small, narrow windows overhead and then into a spectacular courtyard dominated by a sleekly designed pool and spa.
High stone walls, wood ceilings and segmented columns form shaded walkways around the clean, sleek lines of the pool edged with iridescent tiles. A 7-foot-long transitional bed faces a glass-filled gas fireplace and 60-inch flat screen television to form an outdoor den. “This is an area that merges the traditional feel with up-to-date contemporary styling. We especially love the den area. We can watch TV day or night out here, even from the pool,” he smiles.
From the courtyard one enters the main part of the house that Bobby refers to as a “Trinity” design area. Under a 22-foot ceiling with trussed cypress beams and stone-clad walls, three major areas—kitchen, dining and conversation/TV—flow easily from one to another and are connected by the 5-inch distressed hickory plank flooring.
Multiple French doors on either side allow daylight from the courtyard and from an outdoor dining patio on the opposite side to open up the space.
At night, pendant lights add to the spacious feeling of the large room and exterior lighting around the pool and fire bowls on the lanai add an exotic flair.