Room For Two

This carriage house lives way bigger than its square footage—and the owners designed it that way.

WHEN THE BENTON PARK Neighborhood Association hosted its first Tunes on Tap event—like the parlor tours of nearby Lafayette Square but with live music and craft beer—Richard and Ann Higby, who have lived there for eight years, were hesitant to show their home. An 1886 carriage house on a double lot, it’s 800 square feet on paper but closer to 650, says Richard. Yet after a call from alderman Dan Guenther, they were persuaded. It turns out the Higbys had no reason to be nervous about the tight quarters. Fifty people crowded in—and loved it. “People had so many questions,” says Ann. “They felt comfortable asking, ‘How did you work this out?’”

Short answer: Richard, who, before joining design and manufacturing firm idX, designed and built custom furniture, millwork, and architectural elements in Chicago for 20 years. “Richard has really turned this place into something that the two of us enjoy together,” says Ann, who works in public relations for Perficient.

Or, as Richard puts it: “When we came into this place, it was an absolute disaster.”