Hidden Gem in Frisco Heights Designed by Albert Komatsu Offers Hidden Value

Where is Frisco Heights you ask? Most Fort Worth residents wouldn’t be able to locate this Near Southside neighborhood on a map, but there are many intriguing houses in this slim swath bounded by West Berry St. to the south, Forest Park to the east, and TCU to the west.

If you’re a visual learner, you may remember the charming and eclectic Spanish-style house at 2640 Forest Park Boulevard for reference.

This week’s offering is a perfectly preserved Midcentury Modern time capsule in Frisco Heights from 1963 conceived by local legend architect Albert S. Komatsu, who designed several interesting and important structures in Fort Worth including the notorious, now-demolished 18,000-square-foot Fort Worth estate of oil man and twice-acquitted murder suspect Cullen Davis.

Frisco Heights Midcentury Modern

This Frisco Heights residence is a mere 2,822-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-and-one-half-bath house, which demonstrates that you don’t have to go big to pack in high style.

Screened from the street by trees this hidden treasure is a repository of invention. I’m dubbing the design concept as “Tex Mex Japanese Modern.” One is immediately struck by the rich repertoire of materials including brick paver floors, native rock, Mexican tiles, and wood paneling and beams.

From the entry, one steps down a flight of stairs to reach the living room centered on a massive fireplace — one of two — topped by Mexican tiled piers.

Floor-to-ceiling windows on one side of the room illuminate the space. One wall is a somewhat arresting combination of natural stone and wood, which I interpret as an Asian-inspired reference to the exterior environment and a theme we’ll observe throughout the house.

Back upstairs, there are two staircases and two fireplaces here and we find ourselves in the dining room, which is perched above the living room. This house has been in the hands of one family and has never been on the market, hence the vintage furnishings — the authenticity of which would be difficult to replicate with a stager.

A Galley With Grit

The kitchen is one wide, long galley. The galley configuration had its heyday around this era, all in the service of efficiency. There is something in this scheme to recommend itself compared to the far-flung cavernous workspaces that are envied now.

Here is the classic triangle of sink, fridge, and stove within easy reach. I’m jealous of that collection of copper at the room’s end.

More evidence of influence from the East can be found in the sunroom. This inspiring bonus space is a perfect exemplar of environmental blur where the interior mirrors the exterior. A warm composition of wood with rhythmic fenestration and skylights frame the outside environment, and the effect is amplified by the potted trees and abundant plants.

Simple, the primary bedroom is enriched by the large plank floors. Again, the right material is deployed in the right space. There is no door to the bath, and we have to love the randomness of the madly mixed Mexican tile.

The lovely back garden is a beautiful respite.

There are two garage spaces and two additional covered spaces. And now I reluctantly disclose, at the last, the secret little fillip of this listing — the property sits on four lots of over one-half acre, so the land presents a tempting twin opportunity for restoration or development.

Catherine Taylor of Helen Painter Group Real Estate has listed 2601 McPherson Avenue for $848,000.