This Governors Club custom home nestles into a wooded hillside, pairing sustainable design, modern architecture and family-centered spaces.
By Morgan Cartier Weston | Photography by John Michael Simpson
Jason Dell purchased a wooded hillside lot in Governors Club in 2020 and immediately began envisioning a sanctuary that would blend seamlessly with the surrounding forest. “I was inspired by a house I saw in Colorado,” he recalls. “I wanted something that felt immersed in the woods, with spaces for my kids to grow and a tangible connection to the land.”
Jason, a co-owner and integrator at Bold Construction, turned his professional passion into a personal project, building a custom home that reflected both his own craftsmanship and his family’s lifestyle.
By June 2023 – after 14 months of building and navigating pandemic-era hurdles in sourcing materials and subcontractors – Jason and his family moved into their four-bedroom, three-and-ahalf-bath retreat. The result is a striking blend of industrial resilience and natural serenity.
Jason’s guiding philosophy was simple: disturb the hillside as little as possible. The house anchors into the slope with exposed concrete, fiber cement and steel, all softened by warm wood details. Recycled rice hull siding adds both sustainability and durability. “It’s environmentally friendly, resilient and low maintenance,” Jason says.
Inside, clean-lined, minimalist interiors open up to expansive glass walls that frame sweeping views of the forest. At the heart of the home, a modern woodburning stove radiates warmth, its efficiency enhanced by a thermal mass wall of rock wool insulation, concrete and steel studs that captures heat and transfers it to the adjacent primary suite.
Each level of the home invites the outdoors in: The main deck offers space for dining, lounging, yoga, and a hot tub and cold plunge setup. The children’s lower-level living area connects to a vaulted courtyard that floods the space with natural light. “Some people call it a Zen garden,” Jason says. “Right now, it’s mostly gravel, but I see it evolving into a seating or garden area.”
Jason knew, first and foremost, that he wanted his kids, Carter Dell, 17, and Tatum Dell, 15, to feel comfortable in the home. They have their own private floor complete with bedrooms, a shared living area and direct access to the courtyard. “I wanted them to feel safe here,” he says.
The garage, meanwhile, serves as Jason’s personal playground. Inspired by “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” the elevated space houses his BMW adventure motorcycle and recreational vehicle camper – a nod to his love of travel and adventure.
Jason leaned on a network of local talent to bring his vision to life, including Paces & Roehm Architecture & Interiors, Peak Steel of Apex for structural steelwork, Raleigh’s Kels Company for landscaping and Fitch Lumber in Carrboro for windows and veneers. Fireplace Editions and Builders FirstSource provided additional materials and resources.
Every feature reflects Jason’s commitment to thoughtful, sustainable living – from the home’s southwest-facing orientation that maximizes seasonal sunlight and solar heat gain to the solar panels and Powerwall battery backup that supply about half of its energy needs.
“I wanted to place this house within the woods, not on top of them,” he says. A Chapel Hill resident since 2003, Jason has spent most of that time in the Governors Club community. “It’s a small town, but it has everything,” he says. “The university, the restaurants – many of them locally owned – the outdoors. You can be in the country in minutes, or at the beach or mountains in a few hours.”
Jason considers the home largely complete, but he still has future tweaks in mind, like integrating the hot tub more seamlessly into the deck. “I designed it to be more than I need, but enough for my children to feel comfortable before they head off into their own lives,” he says. “And I love knowing that when I travel, I have this place to come back to.”
