The history of 5304 Nakoma Dr. is an enigma. Listing agent Valerie Dillon says she’s gone down a rabbit hole, reaching out to former listing agents and homeowners for information on the 1954 home. She’s learned a few things, like it was Bonick Landscaping that designed the pool and koi pond. But who were the original architect and builder? That’s still a mystery.
The property’s neighborhood, Greenway Parks, was established in 1925 and largely developed by Texas modern architect David Williams. However, several famed Dallas architects, like Fooshee & Cheek and Max Levy, have designed houses in various styles here over the years.
5304 Nakoma Dr. is a true mid-century modern, Dillon says. The interiors are chock-full of quintessential MCM characteristics, like huge windows, transoms, and skylights to create an indoor-outdoor feeling. There are intriguing hard-surface details, like interior planters and a layered brick accent wall in the entry. The brick floors are laid in a herringbone pattern that directs people to the backyard and a greenbelt beyond. But, after you walk down an open hall to the kitchen, the floor pattern changes. Dillon thinks that was meant to create separation between the spaces, but “I would love to talk to the builder, and say, ‘What was the thought process behind this?’”
The interiors have been updated some over the years. The current owner added new countertops and appliances in the kitchen, installed a hot tub out back, remodeled a bathroom, and converted a powder bathroom into a third full bath for the house. She also hired Cuban-American artist and friend Rolando Diaz to paint several murals.
Despite the interior changes, much of this mid-century modern’s exteriors have been preserved over the years. A conservation district, Greenway Parks has many rules for what can be done to a home. But even in the neighborhood, many of the other houses’ updates “lean a bit more transitional,” Dillon says. Meanwhile, this home has stayed true to the “nature that it was meant to be from the very beginning.”
Neighborhood Spotlight
Greenway Parks
And part of that nature is nature itself. The lot is dotted with trees, and much of the property’s design and architecture—like those large windows—accentuate the green surroundings. A wall of bamboo was planted on one side of the home to add greenery as well as to shield noise from Inwood Road. In the back, a decorative fence allows for views of the greenbelt, which can also be accessed via a gate. All that proximity to nature, Dillon says, is priceless.
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