P.S. I'm in zone 5 and currently have a lots of perennials and bushes in front that are in dire need of division and new beds made.

Bumping for help... anyone?

I think your house could lend itself to a warm craftsman style. Cover the entry way, large facia board, large window trim with headers and ledges, pergola over the deck with canopy. Door entrance could also take pergola shape? I would use a large cedar timber and even use a wide piece of wood between the siding and the brick in the front. Landscape, start with a curve pathway to the front door, and a beautiful large leaf tree right in the curve! Tons of potential!

Your sidewalk is too narrow. I would widen the sidewalk and add an arbor halfway down the walkway to define the area as an entrance. Trim back your current landscaping so it doesn't impede the walkway.

Also paint your front door a bright color so it stands out. Right now, it looks like a service door.

Add a portico over the front door to enhance it's importance.

Wow that is a dilemma. The front door side has no appeal whatsoever. And only 1 window. Somehow you need to draw attention to the front door. I would do the deck the whole length of that side so the stairs would come up from the driveway as there appears to be no yard. Up high like that will you be looking into the neighbors yard & windows? You will probably want to have some sort of privacy screen along the long side of the deck. Post a picture of the 4th side of the house, please. Definitely find a talented designer for this dilemma. Get a landscape architect to design the front yard. Look up Dig Doug Designs on this site. He posts great designs

I like a simple portico for your door:

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This arbor may be too elaborate, but this is the insp to define the entry side of your home. I was thinking it would show the way by placing it over the (wider) walkway midway between the sidewalk and the front door. I probably wouldn't put the gate. Just the arbor.

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does the tree have to go? you'll be quite naked...

^This. Love what Dig Doug shows.

For the main door, I would make an entry porch with wide front facing steps instead of the less visible side facing steps you currently have and a wide walkway to the street, planted with low plants, at least some of them bright colored. You don’t want anything to create any additional barrier to sight lines from the street, and what is near the street really needs to unambiguously telegraph that this is the main entry. I wouldn’t add any tall plants or structures such as a gate or arbor between the walk and the main door since you don’t want to block access leaving folks wondering if this is the main door or a secondary, private door.

On first glance, I initially thought that the entry was on the right side under the second floor deck, so I would use a combination of plantings and paint color to make the deck structure fade into the background rather than grabbing a visitor’s eye. I don’t think a fence is going to be tall enough to camouflage your new deck if it is that high.

I am another vote for at least reconsidering the removal of the large tree if it is healthy. I certainly wouldn’t remove it before a certified arborist has evaluated it and a local landscape designer has considered whether it will help the overall feel of the property. I think that you may find with its removal the house and the deck may feel rather exposed.

Also maybe look at starting the sidewalk from the street more at the middle of the yard/ house and the curving over to the side with the door. Having it on the far left side, especially if you approach from the right, it is easy to think there isn't a sidewalk to this house at all..

Thank you all!

So to address a few things that have been mentioned.

The tree yes must go.. unfortunately it's an Ash tree and I had an arborist come by in the fall and tell me if I didn't take it out now it would cost me three times what it would right now because of the Emerald ash borer. Secondly, It is a hazard. Totally surrounded by electrical, cable and phone wires from 3 sides in the tree canopy for my house and my 2 neighbors . It's kinda scary looking at it.

The deck will look down into the neighbors roof and a bit of the back yard. I think that is a great idea to incorporate privacy screening around the entire thing we don't have any privacy at all now and both side yards are definitely unusable at the moment. Great suggestion Thank you.

I agree with the sidewalk being to narrow, I would like it to be widened.

I had thought about incorporating a deck or cement patio area in the side yard on front door side because the cement has heaved and needs to be repaired or replaced anyway.

I do love the portico above the door & I definitely need to look into doing the screen just past the front door towards the back like suggested. That is a great idea.. we used to have a fence with a trash can enclosure in that area never realized what an impact it made until now.

I agree with the deck might overpower the house.. not sure what to do but maybe try to incorporate it better with the house?? Paint? Currently it's a postage stamp compared to what the future deck will be.

Thanks for the great suggestions!

Agree these plants have overgrown their planting bed area . Lol planning on moving most of this to a different spot.

Removing everything seems like a good plan right now.

If you want a forward facing gable over your entry: remove the existing roof of your front porch. It can be replaced with a shed/half roof sloping away from the right exterior side of the house after you create your front porch with a forward facing gable.

Enlarge and enclose the walls and flooring of your existing porch so the exterior wall on the side closest to the road is made even with the rest of the front exterior wall of the home.

Beginning halfway between the downstairs right front window and the right front corner of the house, create a forward facing gable with a ridge point halfway between that beginning point and a point on the right that is as far right as needed to be even with the far right edge of the existing front porch.

Your new front exterior wall of your new wall will be a continuation of your existing front exterior wall and the forward facing gable you create will cover your new 6' deep front porch. Your new entry door will be on the right half of that new front porch.

Alternately, remove only the half of your existing porch roof that slopes away from the road and enlarge the walls of your existing porch as before -- to have the wall closest to the road be even with the exterior wall of the home now closest to the road.

Then extend it the roof slope on the back upward to a new ridge point that will enable the slope that is on the road side of the house (of even length) to extend over your new front porch -- that will have a shed roof toward the road.

Again, put your front entry door in the right side of the new front exterior wall of your new entry and create your gable roof facing the right side of your home.

Then create your new sidewalk leading to your new front door.

If there is room for a 4' - 6' front stoop between the front exterior wall of your home and the tree w/o harming the tree roots, the tree needn't be cut. Toward that end, you might use a treated deck board floor for your porch rather than dig a footing.

As an alternative, you could use a flat roof for your new entry and create a deck that wraps a few feet around your right front corner.

Edited to address tree issue and deck issue.

Adding to prior post:

If there is room for a 4' - 6' front stoop between the front exterior wall of your home and the tree w/o harming the tree roots, the tree needn't be cut. Toward that end, you might use a treated deck board floor for your porch rather than dig a footing.

As an alternative, you could use a flat roof for your new entry and create a deck that wraps a few feet around your right front corner.

Suezbell, the entry is on the left side of the house, not on the right side. Am I unclear about your suggestions or are you unclear as to the location of the main entry door?

Yes door is on left where sidewalk leads to house.

I think I get what she is suggesting unfortunately the tree must go!! And I don't have anything at my front door besides a cement stoop that's about 3x5?

I plan on planting a new smaller tree or adding landscaping to help with the void left from the tree removal.

Mea culpa. No roof above door on left so ... actually did think whatever that is sticking out on the right side of the home was the entry porch w/steps going down and w/parking behind the home in the direction the steps lead.

Is this a split level and front entry between floors?

Is that a deck or porch extending out of the right of this home? If so, into what room does it enter? If it enters into the living room, making that the main entry in order to have a forward facing entry is worth considering.

Yes, it's a split level entry between floors .

Yes that's a deck on the opposite side of house. It opens off the dining room/kitchen.

I like the idea of turning the front door entrance around to face street with some type of build out to pull your eye to that area. New covered porch area or a portico.

Wider sidewalk , completely reworking the current landscaping, replacing the light post and all outdoor lighting, new front door and screen door, fencing.

The deck is going to get new landscaping to help with privacy and screens from the street view. The deck is on the second story... that side of house is 2 story.

I am considering putting in a parking pad in the area in front of the deck side of front yard.. I need to talk to the city to see if that's possible or not. We currently only have parking on street for guest in front and a driveway in back.

I'm going in to discuss with a design build company everything this week. Fingers crossed my budget will get me at least some of my wants. Thanks for all the help and suggestions it's been extremely helpful

How about some type of "faux" entrance?

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Just some thoughts on the side entry.

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