Meet Charlene (Char, pronounced ‘shar‘) Grabowski and Anne Hunt, the new owners of 700 Goodwin, the original reconstruction of the Raleigh Tavern Kitchen built at the very start of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s effort to bring Williamsburg back to life. I had the pleasure of talking to Anne and Char today, and, with this blog as an excuse, got to be wonderfully nosy.
First, the most important question. Do they have a dog?
Yes they do. Sophie is an eight-year-old white terrier who loves to chase squirrels. (Pop-culture reference: “SQUIRREL!”) Char and Anne assure me she is very friendly, but her lizard brain takes over when she sees one of the nuisance rodents, which can be a problem while 700’s back yard is open to the street. (More on the renovations later.) Anne has asked for patience while they sort out the landscaping, so be on the lookout for a runaway terrier.
What brought them to Williamsburg?
The simple answer is that Anne is a native. She went to Lafayette H.S. and was best-friends with Lucy Gunn’s daughter back in the day. She still has relatives in the area, with a cousin over on Indian Springs and her sister on Capitol Landing, with whom they are staying while contractors run rampant over 700.
That isn’t quite the whole story, though. Anne and Char lately moved here from Tucson when Char retired after 30 years as a GE Healthcare executive following a recurrence of cancer first diagnosed in 2017. She (Char) is now in remission, but in her words, “Anne has moved for my career twice. Now it’s my turn…for her, this is coming home.” Char has lived in southern VA four times over her career, so she already knew and enjoyed the area. When Anne wanted to come home, Char agreed.
What brought them to the Burns Lane neighborhood?
It will come as no surprise for everyone to learn the top two reasons:
“We wanted to be near the college.”
“We wanted to be able to walk downtown.”
Of course, it didn’t hurt that Anne was already familiar with the neighborhood. She had friends here before Burns Lane and environs became an unlikely mix of self-organizing retirement community and college party town. Of course, as we’ve already mentioned, she knew Lucy Gunn quite well.
Where are they from and do they have any family?
Anne came from a small (for the time) family, being one of only two children. Her sister still lives (or perhaps lives again) in Williamsburg, so not only fond memories, but family ties, bring Anne here.
Char has a very different background. She is one of ten siblings, originally from Pennsylvania, and has four sibs still living in and around Pittsburgh. The other five are scattered around the US, from Florida to Long Beach, CA.
Have they retired?
For Char, the answer is both yes and no. She no longer works at GE Healthcare as an employee, but is now an independent consultant. She does not expect consulting to take up all of her time, so plans to offer her business skills to a local nonprofit. She just hasn’t decided which one. (Hmmm. Is it “insider trading” if I neglect to put her offer in the blog until after I make the case for OSHER?)
Anne is an interior designer with a background in landscape architecture. While she is still active in her career (The basement apartment at 700 will become her design studio.) She also plans to spend some of her time giving back to the community through the Master Gardener program. She was a Master Gardener in Tucson, so I suspect it won’t be long before she is certified here and giving tours in the historic area.
What are their plans for 700 Goodwin?
Every word Char and Ann spoke reflected their love and appreciation for the history and architecture of 700. In their words, they plan to be, “good stewards” of the property, and as such, will leave the layout and design of the original 18th century replica alone.
However, those of you who’ve seen inside know there is a bit of a time-warp feel when walking from the original build into the modern part of the house as heart pine floors and plaster walls give way to 90s-era ceramic floor tiles, track lighting and vertical blinds.
Acting as general contractor, interior designer and landscape architect, Anne has plans to transform the modern part of the home so it blends, if not seamlessly, then at least harmoniously, into the original construction. The ceramic tile will come up, replaced with wood floors matched as close as budget will allow with the original heartwood pine. Additionally, all the walls will be painted to match the plaster color of the original construction.
In the kitchen, which is in the shed addition on the east side of the house, they’ve taken everything back to the studs and are completely refinishing the space. They have done the same with the master bathroom, and plan to remove all of the leaky skylights and rehab the roof.
Outside, they have removed the back deck and are working with a local landscaping company to completely overhaul the back yard. As a Tucson Master Gardener and soon-to-be Williamsburg Master Gardener, I’m betting Anne will make spectacular gardens.
They have other plans in the works, but we’ll leave the rest for the big reveal in October.
That’s right, Char and Anne plan to have everything done by October. As an experienced interior designer used to riding herd on subs, Anne may be able to pull it off.
The couple says they will host an open house when the work is all done. Then we can all come in and gawk at the rehabbed home. Spoiler: they do not plan to decorate the home in “typical Williamsburg” style. Here is a peek at Anne’s website, which might give you an idea of what style the couple likes. I’m intrigued by the idea of mixing 18th century architecture with modern NY and Paris, and can’t wait until next March, um I mean this October, to see how they bring it together.
Anything to tell us?
Anne and Char want me to convey how much they appreciate the welcome they’ve received by everyone in the neighborhood.
Char: “Do you miss Tucson?”
Anne: “No.”
Char and Anne are at 700 every day to supervise the work, so give them a wave and give Sophie a pet when you see them.
Chris Gareis
Lesley Austin
Anne Hunt
Glenda & Ed Lindsey
Tracy Shackelford
Carol and Warren Billings
Karen
Charlene Grabowski
Marcie Liebel