Set amidst the rolling hills of Charlottesville, Virginia, this Chapel Springs barn stands like a jewel in the fields. Its timeless elegance made stronger by a recent renovation that pairs its historic beauty with modern amenities. While the intent was to maintain the integrity of the original barn, the path was cleared for applying cutting edge technology to create a more modern facility. Lancaster, PA-based B&D Builders, experts in equestrian facilities, renovations and adaptive reuse, collaborated with the owners and the original builder to transform the dark and outdated barn into a space that provides comfort for both animals and riders.
“It was an existing barn with really good bones,” says Daniel Glick, B&D Builders owner and founder. “We peeled back the existing finishes and applied timbers in the form of lock mitered box beams to the existing structural membrane for a more refined finish.”
While the current barn was very well built, it was also dark and enclosed compared to today’s standards. To overcome this, B&D proposed cutting away more than 2/3 of the center aisle roof to open up the space and incorporating Kalwall, an uplighting solution that does not blind or cast shadows on the barn floor which could potentially spook horses.
“With all the framing already in place, we could not prepare for this properly without doing something dramatic,” says Glick. “We proposed a barrel cleaning with the “ribs” holding up the sections we cut out and supported by a series of complex hidden steel beams and other stabilizing systems.”…