One developer’s teardown is another one’s treasure.

That’s how Katie Denton views The Raleigh House, her newest preservation project in Virginia Beach’s sought-after Cavalier Shores neighborhood on the cusp of the North End.

Denton owns Bees Nees , a business focused on local real estate preservation. She and an investor bought the Colonial-style, 3,400-square-foot brick house at 209 44th St. to restore and sell it, rather than build new.

“We’re bringing some modern amenities to it,” she said, “but also a little bit of Old World charm.”

Denton’s flair for renovations began years ago when she transformed two aging vacation cottages in the Outer Banks. Two years ago, she bought three century-old houses on Cypress Avenue in Virginia Beach’s South End and converted them into The Pink Bungalows , where special events were held. For that project, a contractor was able to shore up the foundation of the main event house and salvage all of the walls and the original living room floor.

Her fever for preservation increased after the bungalows, which she recently sold. Now, she’s set her sights on the North End, where developers have been demolishing some of the city’s oldest houses and replacing them with what Denton calls modern “refrigerator boxes.”

“I don’t like to follow the local trends,” she said.

The Raleigh House, on 44th Street, was built in 1965 and sits north of the historic Cavalier Hotel. A brick walkway that leads to the hotel grounds is a stone’s throw from the two-story house, which is surrounded by a regal brick wall.

Its historic neighborhood was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019 and the Virginia Landmarks Register in 2018. The designations, however, do not preclude homeowners from tearing down and rebuilding.

But Denton took a different approach.

“It’s a lot easier to tear a house down and build new,” she said. “We’re doing this because it’s for the community to see special houses like this being restored and given a second chance.”

Bernice Pope, president of the Cavalier Shores Civic League, is hoping more homeowners and developers consider rehabilitating older homes in the neighborhood.

“It really did need somebody to come in and reinvent the spaces in there, which she’s done quite well,” Pope said. “We’re very happy she’s there to preserve the character of that house and keeping it with today’s lifestyle.”

Denton chose the house’s name because 44th Street was called Raleigh Drive nearly 100 years ago. When completed, it will have a new roof, windows, water heaters, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.

Bees Nees anticipates listing the five-bedroom, 5.5-bath home in May at $3.3 million, which is nearly twice the amount her investment group paid for it. Renovations are about halfway done.

The house will feature lush gardens and will maintain the original cobblestone path to the front door, a slate entryway and wood floors. The goal is to harmonize with both the grand hotel and the coastal vibe of the neighborhood.

Denton handpicked the contractors working on the project, including Mike Clough, who helped her with the bungalows. They recently replaced a load-bearing wall with a three-piece beam to create an open layout in the kitchen and family room area.

Tropical-themed wallpaper in the downstairs powder room and gilded light fixtures with jeweled pieces throughout the house, Denton said, will show an interior theme of “Old World Hollywood.”

“Our goal is,” she said, “to try to preserve as much as I can while also freshening it up.”