Southern Exposure With stupendous views of the bay, busy ship channels and multiple bridges, this home brings a touch of Mediterranean style to South Jersey. Needless to add, these homeowners always play to a full house.
Views of the Great Egg Harbor Bay
W
hen they built their home on the Great Egg Harbor Bay, Raffaele and Linda Pansini looked for laid-back comfort and luxurious style. They got both in this rambling, stone-and-stucco Mediterranean villa in Anchorage Poynte, a waterfront community set midway along Somers Point-Longport Boulevard. “As far as the location, to my opinion it’s one of the best,” says Ralph, adding that the setting may rival his native Molfetta, a fishing village in Italy’s Bari Province, on the Adriatic Sea. “We have practically a 270-degree water view,” he says with satisfaction. “We have a perfect sunrise and sunset, and full southern exposure. It may not be No. 1 as far as real estate goes, but there is an old saying: ‘God only makes so many waterfront properties.’ If you want another one like this, you will have to do a long search.” Generous windows and French doors bring the outdoors inside, and six of the seven bedrooms have balconies. Evenings are especially enjoyable when viewed from this vantage point, says Ralph. “It’s worth it to see the (Route 52) bridge all lit up. It’s absolutely gorgeous.”
out on a spit of land overlooking the bay, it’s so close to the water, Linda says it’s like living on an ocean liner. Any given weekend, the house is filled to overflowing with family, including the couple’s three daughters and their families, including seven grandsons ranging in age from three to 16. The welcome begins at a towering entryway under a dramatic bi-level arch, which soars up to a red-tiled roof. Custom-made double doors of Honduran mahogany are seven feet wide, 10-feet tall, and three and a half inches thick. Weighing about 800 pounds, each one took three months to craft and deliver. “It’s dramatic looking,” says Ralph of the entryway. “People come through the front door and think they are walking into St. Peter’s Church. And once you get inside, there is the open space: a wide open living room, dining room and kitchen,” just made for easy entertaining. Equally dramatic is the curving staircase of American mahogany with gently carved white newel posts. “I could have done something simple,” says Ralph, “but I am not a simple builder.”
Quality from the Ground Up As founder of Pansini Custom Homes, established in Ocean City in 1986, Ralph Pansini has designed and built more than 100 homes in the vicinity. This one was made-to-order — all 5,600 square feet of it. Jutting
Eye for Color As in all the Pansinis’ homes, Linda was in charge of the décor, and with her daughter’s encouragement, chose a bold color palette for the living area. The walls and 12-foot coffered ceilings are painted an almost-
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Fall 2017 |
LIFESTYLE
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