You have to be a bit of a rebel to design a contemporary residence in Pittsburgh. This is, after all, a city that's proud of its Victorians and Colonial Revivals. But to do it in the Mexican War Streets, a North Side historic district known for its 19th-century style, well that's just a little crazy.

	Tony Tye, Post-Gazette The master bedroom suite is set off from the other part of the house and is accessed by a wooden footbridge. Click photo for larger image. More information For information on 1315 Arch St., North Side, contact Karl Owens, Howard Hanna Real Estate, at 412-741-2200, ext. 526. View additional photos at www.howardhanna.com, MLS No. 599040.

Meet Jennifer Hursh, who has fully embraced the industrial look in all of her previous projects. She saw no reason to change her style when she bought a former mechanics' repair shop on Arch Street. Now it bears all the hallmarks of a converted urban warehouse, with an open floor plan, tall, dark ceilings with exposed beams and a nondescript (but oh-so-functional) exterior.

"I like the minimalist approach to design," says Ms. Hursh, who bought the 8,000-square-foot warehouse in 2003 for $132,637 and spent the next year working with architects Loysen + Kreuthmeier to give it an upscale, contemporary design.

Now she has put this three-bedroom home, which sits next to the community's Old Allegheny Garden, on the market for $859,000.

Howard Hanna listing agent Karl Owens concedes the price is among the highest ever asked for a single-family home in the War Streets. The second most-expensive property currently for sale is a restored six-bedroom Victorian on North Avenue with an asking price of $469,900.

Oh, it's a big house -- 4,000 square feet of custom living space in the main level and an equal amount below. But there are other, old houses almost as large nearby. What a buyer is getting, Mr. Owens says, is New York City-style living for a non-New York price.

"You can't shop this around," he says.

Made from yellow-orange brick sometime in the 1920s, the building has had many uses over the years. In addition to a garage, it was used for sheet metal fabrication and as a place for set design for Pittsburgh Public Theater. When Ms. Hursh first looked at it three years ago, it was being used as a ceramic tile warehouse.

	Tony Tye, Post-Gazette Above: The 8,000-square-foot Arch Street home was once a repair shop. Below: The kitchen features walnut veneer cabinets and dark green soapstone counter tops. Click photos for larger image.

After a year-long renovation, it's become an architecturally unique living space. The excitement begins at the entrance on Arch Street. In place of traditional doors is a 6-foot-wide door crafted out of Honduran mahogany. A built-in bench along the left side of the tunnel-like foyer provides a comfortable spot to kick off your shoes or organize a briefcase.

As in many contemporary lofts, the main living space is one big room punctuated with the occasional partition in areas where privacy is warranted, such as bathrooms and bedrooms. The massive machinery used to pull engines out of cars is still mounted on the ceiling above the kitchen area, adding to the industrial feel. Breaking up long expanses of exposed brick are entire walls of windows that graduate from opaque on the bottom to clear on the top. But many of the spaces remain very dark. It's less Soho loft than subterranean Batcave, albeit a very sophisticated cave.

"We wanted a great entertaining space," says Ms. Hursh, "kind of like walking into a club."

The residence features some beautiful design and finishes. The 30- by 10-foot kitchen is a visually arresting marriage of stone and wood. walnut veneer cabinets with frosted-glass doors play off dark green Brazilian soapstone counter tops. The appliances are equally high-style: a Miele dishwasher, Sub-Zero fridge and freezer drawer and an Advantium speedcook oven. The adjoining eat-in space, meanwhile, is large enough to house a 20-foot-long shuffleboard table.

The dining room on the other side of the kitchen is graced with an exposed brick wall and ceiling that soars to 14 feet. Two steps lead to a separate dance floor/entertainment area with its own mini-bar and sink and lots of additional storage. There's also a gas line on the step in case the buyer wants a fireplace.

The master bedroom suite is at the far end of the house. This is where it gets really interesting. The original design called for a roofless "outdoor courtyard" with a reflecting pool and fireplace between the suite and kitchen.

But those plans fell through. Instead, a giant concrete trough separates the two sections of the house and one must negotiate a wooden footbridge to get to the master bedroom suite.

The bath, hidden behind a corrugated steel wall, features a Duravit whirlpool tub and wash basin with Hansgrohe Axor faucets. There's also a walk-in shower with soapstone floor and a large mirror that's set back in a "hole" behind the sink. The concrete floor is warmed by radiant heat and the wall partitions fall about 2 feet short of the ceiling, exposing the original beams and adding a sense of spaciousness. A separate dressing area between the bath and bedroom holds both closet space and a washer and dryer.

The master bedroom, which is plainly visible from the front door, has exposed brick walls and three large windows, and sits on a platform that was once a stage.

A hallway at the front of the house, to the left of the foyer, features a wall of windows (frosted at the bottom for privacy) and a second wall that gradually slopes up toward the ceiling. A private bath with no doors or ceiling has a step-down shower with mosaic tile floor. A powder room around the corner has a green glass sink and sliding stainless doors.

The family room/living room to the right of the front door boasts an entire wall of windows, exposed brick walls and a concrete floor. It overlooks the staircase to the lower level, which is edged with fiber optic lighting that changes color every few minutes.

Other high-end features include a whole-house sound system, zoned heat and tankless water heaters, which provide instant hot water.

Not enough space? There's a third bedroom on the lower level that is now used for storage. But the real kicker is the enormous heated garage, which could fit up to a dozen cars, says Mr. Owens.

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Correction/Clarification: (Published March 1, 2005) Jennifer Hursh's name was misspelled in a the original version of this story published online Feb. 25, 2006 about a repair shop and warehouse converted into a modern home in the North Side. Also, the material used for the kitchen cabinetry was misidentified. It is walnut veneer.