Porte Cochere

My new listing at 2216 Lusitano St. in Danville’s Alamo Creek neighborhood features many sensational custom architectural features. One of the most elegant components is the porte cochere.

 

The term “Port Cochere” is derived from the French “port-cochère” meaning “coach door. Once an architectural design feature common to many of the world’s more magnificent manor residents, porte-cochères originally provided a covered entrance for people to exit horse carriages. (Geranium.com, 2014)

 

Merriam Webster’s official definitions of a porte cochere are as follows:

 

1. A passageway through a building or screen wall is designed to let vehicles pass from the street to an interior courtyard.
   
   
2. A roofed structure extending from the entrance of a building over an adjacent driveway and sheltering those getting in or out of vehicles.

Originally seen in large homes and public buildings in the late 18th and 19th centuries, porte-cochere is a French term meaning door carriage that essentially makes it easier to avoid unsightly weather and enter a home or building unscathed. (Meghan Stoneburner, 2019, houseplans.net)

 

Some famous porte-cochères can be seen at Buckingham Palace in England, The White House in Washington D.C., The Lyndhurst Castle in New York, and the Governor General’s entrance at the East Block of Canada’s Parliament buildings. (Geranium.com, 2014)

 

 

Las Vegas is also famous for its many porte cocheres.

 

 

The practicality of the Porte Cochere is leading to its revival in the world’s most magnificent manor residences. (Geranium.com, 2014) It is both beautiful and functional. Located on the side or front of a home, these covered structures differ from carports because no vehicles are parked beneath a porte-cochere. Instead, used as a covered way to enter the home from the car, a porte-cochere is not for parking but for driving under to enter the home and then continue to the garage to park the car.

 

Reasons why you might want a porte-cochere in your new house plan:

 

 

 

Want a porte cochere for yourself? Stop by one of our open houses on Saturday, May 7th, or Sunday, May 8th from 1-4 PM.

 

 

Best, Joujou