Poised Grande Dame in Placid Park Hill Features Gothic Details With Modern Updates

Fort Worth’s Near Southside is replete with venerable old neighborhoods, rich in appeal. Among them is Park Hill, a neighborhood comprised of a handful of shaded bends. Just above the Fort Worth Zoo could almost be described as a enclave. In spite of the array of styles — some stately, some quirky — and a range of scales — near castles and  quaint cottages — Park Hill has the consistency of demeanor that only comes with age.

The poised grande dame that is 2323 Medford Court West is a perfect specimen of pure, Park Hill enchantment.A deep setback on a lot with mature trees and rose-lined walkway provide the charming context for the 4,200-square-foot, 1929 Tudor of variegated brick and stone with decorative timber inserts. The stone surrounding the entrance arch in perfect plumb, with no sign of separation from the brick, attests to a solid foundation.

The front foyer offers a prescient preview to the four-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bath house, which misses no opportunity to beguile. An imaginative staircase turns inside a bay of pastel stained glass, an unusually placed landing powder room, peaked arches leading to a sitting room with a floor of random old Vermont slate and a handsome iron and glass door are an incomplete inventory of design elements which subtly enrich the interior.

The lavishly scaled living room, which handily houses a grand piano and large seating area with space to spare, floats beneath the entry and dining room. The pointed arches of the room openings are thoughtfully echoed in the design of the chimney piece.

The scale of the dining room is equally grand. Though the current decor is traditional in keeping with style of the house, these light-drenched rooms of perfect proportion could readily accommodate a wide repertoire of decorative schemes.

The spacious, loaded kitchen — Thermador ovens, a Viking range, and separate dedicated wine and beverage refrigerators — might come as a surprise in a house of this age. Though not apparently the result of an addition, there is a thoughtful incorporation of a breakfast room. The extra ground floor bedroom with bath, tucked behind the kitchen, also appears to be original.

Pleasing, rambling outdoor spaces mirror the interior. A closed carport or carriagehouse, the invention of the present owners, looks more like a lovely garden folly and has freed up the former garage for use, at present, as an artist’s studio.

Located behind yet another bewitching Gothic arched door, the master bedroom suite includes a sitting room (now an office) and an en suite bath of generously scaled, modern proportions.

There is, in addition, a terrace off the bedroom. The two other upstairs bedrooms are also ample in scale.

Windows are now energy efficient double-glazed, and the slate roof (which looked in perfect nick to me) is being replaced at considerable expense, relieving prospective buyers of worry for 100 years — give or take.

Listing agents Kendall Karr Kostohryz and Kris Karr of Williams Trew are offering this gem for $1.217 million.

Eric Prokesh is an interior designer whose work has appeared on HGTV, and in books and publications including D Home, Southern Accents, House Beautiful, and House and Garden. In January 2005, HG named Eric one of the 50 tastemakers in America and D Home has included him as one of Dallas’ Best Designers for 10 years. Having lived most of his life in Dallas, he now calls Fort Worth home and is one of our experts on beautiful Fort Worth Dirt.