Icehouse at Rosslyn

One of the four buildings still standing (if barely) when we purchased our "old house, new home" in 2006, Rosslyn's icehouse was "not worth salvaging" according to our inspector. 17 years later this once derelict outbuilding was finally transformed (2022-3) from an obsolete 19th century utility building into a 21st century work+life flex space. Adaptive reuse of Rosslyn's historic icehouse into a welcoming year-round hub of activity has been the coup de maître culminating almost two decades of reimagination and revitalization.

Looong overdue, a total historic rehabilitation of Rosslyn’s icehouse had been a pipe dream since 2006. But just as long — or almost as long — we’d postponed all but its most critical preservation. Year after year, as one of the extant bridges to Rosslyn’s past, we never abandoned hope that we’d eventually be able to tackle this conversion. Quarantining at Rosslyn during the pandemic reignited our vision and passion, ultimately catalyzing the top-to-bottom revitalization that began a little over two years later.

The posts below offer a glimpse into why/how Rosslyn’s icehouse was, is, and will continue to be important.