Couple converts Shippan Point colonial into house of their dreams – The Advocate

Photo: Matthew Brown / Hearst Connecticut Media

Home owners Charles Wintrub and Tammy Davis with Zuul, the family pet in Stamford.

Home owners Charles Wintrub and Tammy Davis with Zuul, the family pet in Stamford.

An exterior photo of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior photo of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

The sitting room at 35 Verplank Ave. in Stamford.

The sitting room at 35 Verplank Ave. in Stamford.

Charles Wintrub stands in his dream kitchen at his Verplank home (exterior on left) on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

Charles Wintrub stands in his dream kitchen at his Verplank home (exterior on left) on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

Home owners Charles Wintrub and Tammy Davis on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

Home owners Charles Wintrub and Tammy Davis on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior photo of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior photo of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior photo of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior photo of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior of the backyard of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior of the backyard of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior of the backyard of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An exterior of the backyard of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the dining room of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the dining room of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the guest bedroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the guest bedroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the master bedroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the master bedroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the guest bathroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the guest bathroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the third floor bedroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of the third floor bedroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of bathroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of bathroom of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a finished basement at 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a finished basement at 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a finished basement at 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a finished basement at 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

A early 1920's fire extinguisher, original to the home at 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

A early 1920's fire extinguisher, original to the home at 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a sitting room of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a sitting room of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a sitting room of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

An interior view of a sitting room of 35 Verplank Avenue on Friday, July 19, 2017 in Stamford, Connecticut.

Couple converts Shippan Point colonial into house of their dreams

STAMFORD It started with an oven and quickly escalated.

Tammy Davis and Chuck Wintrub did not expect remodeling their kitchen to accommodate a fancy new appliance would mean the beginning of a full renovation to their turn-of-the-century Verplank Avenue home.

But thats how these things often go.

Now, eight years after turning the Shippan Point colonial into their dream house, Davis and Wintrub are happily doing it all over again in Boulder, Colo. The couple is moving out west to be near their son and his wife, who are expecting their first child in the fall.

Id rather be with grandchildren, Wintrub said. We can build another home of our dreams.

At the onset of their real estate hunt nearly 20 years ago, the couple initially set their sights on North Stamford, where Wintrub was raised. They were not expecting to fall in love with a 1910 house a block from the lapping shore.

Shippan has that effect on people, and its easy to see why.

Here the lot is flat, the neighbors are fabulous and theres only one way in, which I think builds a community, he said.

The couple undertook some early renovation projects, like finishing the basement into a comfy den for their two sons, who were 9 and 10 when the family moved across town in 1998.

What was cool is that all their friends would come over and hang out here. They were great kids and we knew exactly what they were up to, Wintrub said.

No, we knew exactly where they were, Davis corrected.

We had a sense of what they were up to, her husband said. They were good kids.

The basement has a built-in refrigerator and shelves, not to mention a wine cellar for the adults and and a cut-out under the stairs for Fido. Or in this case its Gozer, the familys last dog.

Their current pooch, Zuul (Ghostbusters figures heavily into the family narrative) prefers the yard, a flawlessly manicured third of an acre where Davis and Wintrub have hosted several outdoor movie nights. Guests were invited to viewings of Chinatown and To Kill a Mockingbird under the stars, the salty breeze from the water cooling them on balmy summer nights.

We would have people come in their PJs and bring a lawn chair, Davis said.

The interior of 35 Verplank is just as conducive to entertaining. With twin ovens and six burners, the Bluestar range that launched their renovation is used to cook for upward of 30 guests. A wall-mounted TV overlooks the 12-foot granite island. Theres a formal dining room with speakers tucked into the ceiling.

I love to cook. Thats my hobby, said Wintrub, chairman of Stamford-based Catalyst Marketing. We love to do Sunday night dinners. When I cook all day, I like to watch football, so we set the kitchen up around me being able to cook and watch football.

The upstairs guest bedroom opens onto one of two second-floor porches. The one off that room is the cocktail porch, while the one off the master suite is for drinking coffee, the couple likes to say. When the trees are barren, the shoreline is visible from the upper stories. The couple had a front-row seat for Hurricane Sandy rolling in back in October 2012, drinks in hand.

Wintrub and Davis will cherish these memories when they leave their five-bedroom, five-bathroom, 4,400-square-foot home, on the market for $1.45 million, and move into dream house No. 2.

Standing in his perfect kitchen, once a porch, and scratching the dogs head, Wintrub said simply, Dreams change.

eskalka@stamfordadvocate.com

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Couple converts Shippan Point colonial into house of their dreams - The Advocate