Bill Wade, Post-Gazette Carol and Larry Farley's dog, Cammy, has one of the best seats in the couple's condominium on the 20th floor of Gateway Towers. Windows on this side show the Allegheny River and part of the North Side, including PNC Park and Heinz Field. The Farleys and their visiting children and grandchildren get a great view of fireworks from here. Click photo for larger image.

A friend told Carol Farley that once she had lived in Gateway Towers for a while, the views of Downtown and the North Shore would become routine, "almost like wallpaper."

Hasn't happened yet.

"After two years, I still haven't gotten used to it. It changes all the time. You get thunderstorms, snow squalls. I can see 10 bridges from here."

"All the activity -- the buildings don't change, but the people and the road and river traffic do," agreed Larry Farley, who with his wife retired after they sold Dargate Auction Galleries and their penthouse apartment above it in 2002.

In March 2003, they bought three units on the 20th floor of this 27-floor 1960s apartment building-turned-condominiums. Larry, who had lived in Gateway for several months when he moved to Pittsburgh in 1988, said they never really looked anywhere else.

"We knew this is where we wanted to be," Carol said.

They have no regrets about leaving Friendship for Downtown, or about undertaking a six-month major renovation, their fifth together in 24 years. They chose the same general contractor they had used for their Friendship penthouse, J. Francis Co. of the North Side.

Like that 11,000-square-foot home, this 4,000-square-foot condominium is a wide-open series of contemporary spaces that showcases the couple's impressive collection of antiques, artwork and Oriental rugs. The big difference is those panoramic views on three sides.

Pam Panchak, Post-Gazette The Farleys sit with their dog, Cammy, at their baby grand piano. Click photo for larger image.

Maximizing the spectacular views and overcoming the project's many hurdles recently earned J. Francis an award for residential interiors over $100,000 from the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. The Farleys' home, whose purchase and renovation totaled around $1.1 million, beat out multimillion-dollar projects from a 10-state region.

Looking at the space now, it's hard to picture what it looked like before. Two of the three units had already been combined, but the layout was all wrong for the Farleys. So, they turned to an architect, right?

Nope, Larry tackled the design himself, with his Dell computer and $49 computer-aided design software from Smartdraw.

"We knew what we wanted," he said. "We did the design as we went."

Larry included in his drawings all 20 of the home's Oriental rugs, culled from the more than 50 that had covered the floors of their Friendship penthouse. He also measured and placed much of the furniture and artwork they planned to keep, selling off many more pieces acquired during their time as auctioneers.

	Pam Panchak, Post-Gazette A floral still-life, carved ivory tusk and 18th-century Chinese teak table greet visitors at the condo's entrance. Removing most of the interior walls allows sunlight to brighten the dining room, left, and kitchen, right. Click photo for larger image.

On his computer, Larry could easily erase the many 2 1/2-inch thick concrete walls that had cut up the three units into one- or two-bedroom apartments. But he had to design around structural columns and the chases containing plumbing and utilities.

He ended up with a floor plan that has the kitchen and formal dining room at the center, three of the four bedrooms and 2 1/2 of the 3 1/2 baths clustered in a private wing near the entrance, and the living room, study and family room/entertainment area on the outer edges, closest to the views.

Only once, while the couple was away on vacation, did a real architect have to redesign an interior wall to contain a chase. The architect also had to sign off on Larry's floor plan.

For a contractor, working with an amateur can have its drawbacks. Larry recalls one blow-up, "the only flaw in our relationship" with John McCloskey, president of J. Francis.

"I called a meeting and said, 'We need to do something,' " McCloskey said. "Every day there would be three new drawings."

"John wanted an architect's drawings," Larry said. "I said, 'You'll just have to find another way.' "

Pam Panchak, Post-Gazette The master bedroom shares a curving glassblock wall with the master bath. Besides holding Carol Farley's collection of Moorcroft pottery, the glass wall and bathroom door bring sunlight into the bath. Click photo for larger image.

The solution turned out to be simple: Have Larry date each of his drawings so the contractor would know which was the most recent.

McCloskey, who has since done 10 other projects in Gateway Towers, said the Farleys' ability to come to quick agreement was key to finishing the project on time.

"People normally spend one year on design. The entire design-build process took six months. They're such fast decision-makers. Discuss it for 7 minutes, then, boom, a decision."

J. Francis was even able to handle a last-minute change that hit Carol late one night.

"I woke up and said, 'Larry, the kitchen is on the wrong side. It should be on the less formal side,' " she remembered.

And so the kitchen and dining room were flipped. The kitchen, which was designed by Mike Bonato of Excel Kitchen Center, boasts cherry Mouser cabinets with commercial-grade appliances by Wolf, SubZero and Dacor. The Shivakashi granite countertop has a rectangular planter cut into it so Carol can do a little indoor gardening or display seasonal flower arrangements.

	Pam Panchak, Post-Gazette The kitchen of Larry and Carol Farley's Gateway Towers condo. Click photo for larger image.

For J. Francis, ripping out the concrete walls that Larry erased on his computer was just the beginning of the challenges. All debris had to be sealed in plastic bags, and its workers had to compete with other contractors for use of the single, small freight elevator. They also had to figure out how to transport long pieces of crown molding and baseboard up 20 stories. The solution was a drum hoist used to draw 16-foot lengths of trim through the center of the fire stairs.

Decorator Bruce Adlard had it a little easier. The Oriental rugs the Farleys chose for each room often dictated the color schemes, and most of the furniture came from their Friendship penthouse.

"I enjoyed coordinating everything to play a role as background for their art and antiques," he said.

Some of Adlard's favorite touches are the custom-printed wallpapers in the master bedroom and foyer from Le Tapisseur and the creamy white porcelain tile that runs throughout, tying the spaces together.

The Farleys, meanwhile, have surrounded themselves with only the objects they both loved in their previous home; all others were sold. Their eclectic tastes are evident to visitors as soon as they enter. A free-standing wall displays a floral still-life above a carved ivory tusk from Hong Kong and an 18th-century Chinese teak table.

Other distinctive paintings include an early 20th-century snow scene by William G. Mayer of the East End, a 16th-century religious painting by an unknown artist and a 1964 painting by Nelly Alvarez of Argentina, showing shoeshine boys cooling off in a reflecting pool. Beneath the Alvarez painting is a 17th-century round oak gateleg table surrounded by eight circa-1800 spindle-back chairs made of elm with wicker seats.

A nearly 80-year-old, 9-foot Brunswick pool table in Art Nouveau style anchors the family room/entertainment area, where toys and games await the couple's eight grown children and 17 grandchildren. The home, which has one bedroom that can sleep six children, was designed with their visits in mind.

"I can't think of any location that has such access to theaters, restaurants, Point State Park. There are 34 acres of beautiful river walks," Carol Farley said. "For empty-nesters, retired people or newlyweds, it's an amazing place to be."