Thomas Harding visited the artisically designed family cottage on Mill Street in Shepherdstown. The home is comfortably nestled in a wooded nook overlooking the Town Run waterfalls.
I walked into Scooter and Kelly Scudieri home, stepped through the hallway into the living room, and stopped still. I’m mesmerized, gob smacked; I hold my breath.
Through the four giant-sized windows that form the southern aspect to their home blasts the Town Run waterfall. It plummets over a thirty-foot wall of rock, past the Old Shepherdstown Mill, gushing past Scooter and Kelly’s home, on the way to the Potomac, a few hundred feet away.
This is without doubt the best view from any house in Shepherdstown.
Scooter is a self taught singer-songwriter-activist who has opened for more than 30 international acts, including Dave Matthews, Nils Lofgren, Widespread Panic, Jason Mraz as well as Jewel. Kelly is an accomplished artist in her own right. Painting brightly characterized angular figurines on large white canvases, Kelly’s work has been presented in area galleries for many years.
Kelly and Scooter moved into the house in 1995. They were tenants then. “We took good care of the house. The landlord liked us. She said that she wouldn’t have sold the house to anybody but us. It was a very good experience.”
The house was different back then. “Today we call it the ‘Other House,’” says Kelly laughing. “We have done so much to it over the past few years. It hasn’t been easy; we had to overcome some problems. Doesn’t everyone who renovates their home and continues to live in the house during the work?” Kelly pauses a moment, turns, smiles at Scooter, and adds, “But it was worth it. It has all been worth it.”
The house was extensively renovated and extended in 2005 by A.V. Rauth with the help of plans prepared by local architect Andy Singletary. What was once a one-level, one-bedroom cottage, is now a two-level, two-bedroom, two bathroom home with a large living room, deck, and two basement-level studio spaces.
“Our six-year-old daughter Sophia did not used to have her own room,” said Kelly. “She had to sleep in the alcove above the living room. She now has her own beautiful bedroom. She is totally delighted.”
“We wanted to bring the outside in, and the inside out,” says Scooter. “We wanted earth tones, a natural feeling. We now have stone floors, wood beams, gorgeous slate. We wanted to let as much light in as possible. If you stand on the street, you can actually look through the house and see trees out the other side. The biggest word to sum up what we wanted was SIMPLIFY.”
Scooter wants to show me around the house, but I’m still transfixed by the view. I’m having a hard time getting away. Scooter pulls me away by offering me coffee. I walk to the kitchen area.
“We wanted the kitchen to be a main focus of the house,” he tells me while fixing me a stiff cup of java. “The best food I’ve ever eaten is made by my wife. I wanted the best kitchen we could build for her.”
The kitchen is compact but very easy to get around in. Quality stainless steel appliances, large range, good lighting. There is an eating nook tucked away in one corner, with a laundry room and bathroom behind that. “We like little nooks,” adds Scooter. “We want guests to feel comfortable wherever they are in the house.”
Scooter continues the tour and leads me down a metal spiral staircase and leads me into Kelly’s studio. The light is clean and strong. Kelly’s art caresses my eyes. Work is clearly in progress. Scooter seems to read my thoughts and says, “We wanted a place where we could create art. This place is awesome to make art. It’s inspiring.”
Next door sits Scooter’s space. His is a music studio, black paint on the walls and ceilings. Guitars hanging from hooks on the walls. The roof is heavily soundproofed, with a professional looking mic and set of audio mixers. There are also a multitude of Kiss rock band dolls on a shelf. “They are original,” Scooter tells me proudly.
I go outside to take some exterior shots. I’m once again struck by the dramatic beauty of the place. There is a large deck that extends from the living room. From here you can see the Town Run, the enormous steel waterwheel of the Shepherdstown Grist Mill. Downstream sit two stone columns that were perhaps the original site of the mill as well as an abandoned wooden structure.

I grab a few more photos and head back inside. The family gets going with their evening chores. It’s time for me to leave. I enjoy one more sip of the extra strong cup of coffee, say my thanks and goodbyes, take one more look at the extraordinary view out the windows, and head outside into the spring morning.