Page 25 - Cherry Gate
P. 25
HOMEOWNER'S STORY
We began by choosing a lot on a cul-de-sac in Nichols. There are important reasons we chose
Nichols: a very close-knit community with the unique Nichols Improvement Association as its
hub. This non-profit community organization provides activities for every age, from a Halloween
Parade for children to Wine Tasting for adults; a seasonal Farmer’s Market, Christmas Tree
Lighting, summer camp for children; forty pristine acres that include a pond, meadow, baseball
fields and the historic Starkweather House, which serves as a community gathering place.
We knew that we wanted to raise our children in this close community. As we designed the
home and grounds, we carefully situated the house in the center of 2.2 acres. The privacy
afforded by the mature woodlands offer year-round seclusion as well as views of the
professionally landscaped grounds, which provide color and interest in every season. The
kitchen and expansive deck have a southern exposure overlooking the large, level backyard
which includes a fire pit and a koi pond with a waterfall.
Our layout takes advantage of this southern exposure, with a two-story composite window over
the double sink in the kitchen. As your children play in the backyard or on the deck, you have
them in full view. You will enjoy entertaining friends and family with ease, moving between the
indoor dining and outdoor deck seating. A portion of the deck is covered by the master bedroom
upper deck, creating a great outdoor room to enjoy in any season.
If the weather is inclement, there are many large spaces inside for your guests and your
children’s guests to enjoy. We will miss our annual Super Bowl Party that easily accommodated
fifty or more guests each January. The natural gathering place, of course, is the kitchen, which
contains an eleven-foot island and wet bar. The family room includes a fireplace and the
adjacent sunroom also contains a gas wood stove for cooler days. Upstairs, the third floor
provides a media/playroom for the children; a convenient ‘sleep over’ space that our children
dubbed ‘the tree house’. Additionally, the huge walkout basement with nine-foot ceilings boasts
wall projection media, a pool table, a dart board, a ping pong table, and a large seating area for
watching movies. This walkout includes a large patio area for entertaining from the lower level.
The multiple indoor and outdoor spaces provided the perfect venue for our children and their
friends no matter what the occasion. Our home was the hub of our children’s friends’ many
activities, from practicing lacrosse on the back lawn, to movie nights in the basement, to pasta
dinners before a cross country meet.
The Trumbull Public Schools are well known for their academic excellence, award-winning high
school band, competitive sports teams, nationally placed debate teams, and of course,
dedicated educators. Our children reached their highest potential as a part of the Trumbull
Public School system.
The Town of Trumbull is a unique community that enjoys many volunteer organizations with a
warm small-town feel. There are two outdoor pools, one indoor pool, an eighteen-hole golf
course, an executive nine-hole course, tennis courts, and parks dedicated to sports. There are
also woodland areas with marked trails traversing streams and ponds in quiet New England
forests.