
Keeping it local could be the Phelan family motto. Laurie was born in Naples, grew up in the Tall Pines neighborhood, and attended nearby Baron Collier High School. After graduating from Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, Georgia, she moved back to town and worked alongside her father, Larry Farese.
Grant arrived in Naples when he was only 12 years old. His father, Tony Phelan, was in the restaurant business in North Texas. After the oil bust in the 1980s affected the state’s economy, Tony moved his family as far away from the Lone Star State as possible, landing in Naples. In 1997, despite a cancer diagnosis, he opened the first Pinchers Crab Shack in Bonita Springs. Grant, who was enrolled in the hospitality program at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, moved back to help his father temporarily. He later graduated from the Ivy League institution.

In due course, Grant officially joined his father in business and today serves as CEO of Phelan Family Brands, which boasts a portfolio of independently and locally owned restaurants, including Texas Tony’s Rib & Brewhouse, Deep Lagoon, The Bay House, Chop’s City Grill (in both Bonita Springs and Naples), Keewaydin’s on Fifth, Pazzo! Cucina Italiana, Two Fillets, Phuzzy’s Boat Shack, and CJ’s on the Bay, as well as 13 Pinchers locations across South Florida.

High school sweethearts, Grant and Laurie married and together have four children ranging in age from 14 to 20. They raised them in the same neighborhood where Laurie grew up—in a community of single-family homes first developed in the 1970s off of Airport-Pulling Road and Naples Boulevard. The family so loved being there that when relocating to a newer and more upscale home became a possibility, Laurie did not want to leave.
Consequently, in 2015, Grant and Laurie purchased a 20-year-old home situated on a lake across from the house Laurie grew up in. It was ideal for a larger family, with five bedrooms, four baths, and 5,000 square feet; they renovated the first floor within the initial year of ownership. In 2024, rather than relocate, they again chose to renovate. This time, it was a whole-house remodel. Laurie commissioned interior designers Susan Anderson and Natalie Rogers of Studio Grey to help fashion a mountain-style home—with Aspen-like vibes—that is family-oriented, warm, and inviting.

Instead of ripping out the original custom-designed staircase and the large overhead beams previously added, Laurie requested that the design team work with these elements. “The home was very dated and dressed in dark reddish woods typical of the early 1990s,” says Anderson. As the facade of the house fit a Colorado-chalet look, Anderson relays it was more than feasible to realize a rustic yet chic, contemporary interior in the traditional home. The staircase and beams were sanded down and stained a light color; a stacked limestone wall now adorns the stairwell. Simple lines, natural textures, and refined materials contribute to a thoughtfully accessorized open living space where the family tends to spend most of their time.

Laurie was delighted with the designers’ attention to detail. The home is filled with neutral-colored furniture. Brass-accented pendant lamps hang above a large island topped in a silky white surface, and light-wood barstools are positioned next to the island. In a second living area tucked behind the staircase, two large sepia-toned photos of horses—taken by Dennis Goodman—hang on the wall.
“The home feels fresh and modern. It is current with no heaviness,” says Anderson. “Ultimately, as a designer, I want to make the family happy. Natalie and I want to listen to our clients and bring their vision to fruition.” For the Phelan family, that vision includes keeping family and business grounded in Naples.
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