Keep it. Show us some real photos of the living room and we can help brighten it.

I thought the photo from the living room side was uploaded, but it didn't go through...so I just added it!

Thanks, Judy! There are two beautiful, large windows on either side of the door/sidelight (it's hard to get a good angle because it's a narrow (but long) space. It's a brick wall that the previous owners painted white.

I'm guessing it does a good job of blocking bad weather or winds blowing through the house. What a great texture on that wall. You can do lots with that.

Light makes a room livable! If knocking down the wall will bring in more light, you should go ahead & do it.

you could just probably have a partition right in front of entrance door, so it will to an extent provide certain amount of privacy.

Partition could be a functional aesthetic piece with some storage etc.

Keep it! ---It adds a ton of character! Any place to add a sun tube?

I would knock it down. I also love natural light. That said, you may want to plan something that will give the feel of an entry since you will no longer have one, especially if people generally come into the house through this door. A coat closet, a difference in flooring, a ceiling height change.

It adds character! Can you increase the size of the openings?

Bri Bosh- it faces South :) One downside to knocking it down would be too much Florida sun coming through and heating up the house.

Thanks for all the ideas!

Unfortunately there's no room to put a table w/décor up against it because the door almost touches the brick wall when it's open (it's quite a narrow space).

We thought about a sun tube! Might look into that more. Some people have suggested cutting out "windows" in it or turning it into a half wall, but I'm not sure if those ideas would look awkward. What do you think?

Lil S- I wish our ceilings were that high because then I would totally increase the openings! That's a beautiful brick wall set-up!

We do love the character and texture it brings (there is a big, white brick fire place in the living room as well, so some of that character would stay if we decide to knock down the wall), but it can be so dismal during the day without the natural light coming through. I totally agree that natural light makes it more livable! So much to think about! :)

This is an old picture from the previous owner, but this is what's on the other side of the brick wall. This room has a recessed floor and what feels like low ceilings.

Does the entryway get warm from the light coming in?

It does get fairly warm, but I think if we bought the right kind of shades/blinds for the windows, it would be ok.

I think Beverly's first photo would look fantastic and still serve as a smaller barrier into the house, while letting more light in.

Heat, privacy, character you can tackle after knocking down wall.

This also makes your living room bigger which is much required if your ceiling is also on lower side.

You would definitely need some storage (may be as a partition) to accommodate shoes, keys, letters etc. which might otherwise clutter your big living room.

yeah, knocking down the wall partly or fully as you feel it, is best.

Personally, I don’t like the design. Opening a door onto a brick wall seems really unappealing. IMO, take it down.

If its natural light you want. Leave it and have someone cut a window or pass through in it. could put privacy glass in it if you still wanted to keep it private. Make it as big wide as you want but would probably keep it 36 or 42 inch off the floor so thing could be put under it on either side.

What a crowded space for greeting guests! You'll have to redo the floors too I guess but worth it. I would replace the Victorian style door with something contemporary to work with the plate glass windows. I doubt that door is appropriate for your home's exterior style either.

It will depend on the costs for us to determine if its worth keeping or not. I do not think it adds value in terms of aesthetics or design.

I'd knock it down.

Is your contractor 100% sure that this can be removed?

That is a thick masonry wall and due to the narrow front entry I feel like that used to be the exterior wall and your entry used to be the front porch. Have an engineer review this before knocking it down, not every contractor knows how to identify something bearing structural loads.

If you have a true stone mason, personally I would add an opening in the wall. Continue the arch so that it matched the doors openings, about 4' off the floor directly in front of the door and the same width as the door openings already in the wall. This will add in light while allowing you to still have furniture arranged and block messes from the front door. You could also use it as a vase entry table by placing a vase of flowers or key tray in the opening ledge.