On an exceptional block in Observatory Park, this traditional-style home sits behind a gated front yard and a stand of beautiful trees.

It was expanded and renovated to live the way people actually want, open and easy where the house gathers, quiet and private where it counts. Inside, walnut floors run beneath a wainscoted entry and an iron-rail staircase. Just off the foyer, a study wrapped in warm wood built-ins sits behind a custom arched window.

The heart of the house is the back, where a great room with a white coffered ceiling and a carved limestone fireplace flows into the kitchen and a casual dining space. Arched French doors line the room, and a twelve-foot wall of La Cantina doors stack open so the whole space spills out to the patio. On a summer evening, there's no line between inside and out.

The kitchen was made to be cooked in and gathered around: a pro gas range under a custom hood, quartz counters and an arched leaded window looking South. Soft green tile and white cabinetry keep it bright, and a butler's pantry with wine storage connects it to the formal dining room for the nights that call for it. Upstairs, the primary suite offers dual closets and a spa-like bath with heated marble floors, a soaking tub and steam shower. Two more bedrooms each have walk-in closets, sharing a bath and a generous laundry room nearby.

The finished lower level rounds things out with a wet bar and living room to spread out, a fourth and fifth bedroom (currently serving as a home gym) and full bath.

Then there's the backyard, which is really the headline. A heated (snow melt) flagstone patio with runs the full width of the 7,860-square-foot lot, with a pool fed by a brick waterfall, a full outdoor kitchen, a bar built for a crowd, and pergolas strung with lights overhead. This is Observatory Park living at its finest and not one to be missed.