Feasibility Studies
If you’re starting on your architectural journey, you might be trying to figure out what’s possible. Are you trying to confirm that your vision is doable on your budget or timeline? Weighing whether to buy a new house or build an addition? Want to discuss your vision with your lender, but don’t know where to start? Interested in progressive green building strategies, but want to learn more about your options and their cost implications? Heard that zoning issues might cause you trouble, and want to know what you’re getting into? Have a thousand ideas, but don’t know how to pinpoint which strategy is the right one to pursue?
There are often tons of issues to sort out before you feel ready to embark on a full-blown design project. If you’d like to get some answers before diving in completely, this is a good option for you.
We’ll start by meeting with you to discuss your project’s specific questions and issues you’d like investigated, work with you to answer those questions, and finish with a report or pre-design drawing package that you can use to determine your next steps. We love complicated projects!
Residential Interiors and Commercial TIs
Interiors and TIs are some of our favorite types of projects. Does your space (residential or commercial) need some attention to atmosphere? These projects are focused on improving usability of an existing space, including strategically adjusting the space by adding or removing interior walls, doors, and fixtures.
TIs, or tenant improvements, are interior-focused projects in commercial buildings that are already built. They can be large and dramatic (for example, turning an old warehouse into a restaurant) or small and focused (like refreshing an office). TIs aren’t limited to interior spaces, but the focus is often on the inside of the building. A TI can be a complicated proposition, dealing with complex existing conditions, budgets where every item counts, and fast timelines. We use our experience, clear lines of communication, and a fierce commitment to your vision to get these sometimes-thorny projects to the finish line.
Additions and Remodels
We love additions and remodels!
Ready to turn your garage into a writer’s retreat or fabulous ADU? Have a dream of adding extra space to your house, or reworking the yard and patio? Want to refresh that kitchen and turn the basement into a real living space? Ready to just gut the whole shebang on a cute old Victorian and turn the interior into an open, calm retreat?
Chances are good you’ve been working on this dream for a while, envisioning exactly how you can rework your current space to make it just right for you. We want to hear every detail of what you’ve been imagining, even if it’s not pulled together into a cohesive vision – that’s what we’re for! We want to see all the inspiration images you’ve collected, every little note you’ve jotted down. And if you don’t have any of those things, just the idea that you’re ready for a change, that’s great too! We’ll explore options with you and help evaluate the best path forward.
When we approach additions and remodels, we want to understand as much about your lifestyle as possible. We get into the why of your project, so that we can create a design that is resilient to the pressures that come with a remodel, like unknown existing conditions (oops, turns out that there’s rot in the walls!) and coordinating work with your actual, you know, life (do you want to live in your house while a contractor is ripping out the kitchen?).
Additions and remodels can be just as complex and intense as a new construction project, but they are an amazing way to get something that works just right for you.
New Construction
Exciting! Scary! Back to exciting again! Embarking on the adventure of new construction is one of those activities that could really, truly, change your life. For such a big project, you’re gonna need the big guns. That’s us!
New construction could be an ADU, a cabin or house, a co-housing development, or a commercial or mixed use space.
For new construction, you might want to bring an architect on to your team before you’ve secured a property. Starting with a feasibility study before investing in a property is a prudent approach. On the other hand, if you’ve already secured a property and are ready to dive straight into design, so are we!
Residential
Building a new home involves much more than just the home itself. There is landscaping, stormwater management, structural engineering, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, zoning and building code research, negotiating with the AHJ (Authority Having Jurisdiction, often the city or county that your property is in), handling permitting paperwork, responding to any questions and corrections that come up during the permitting process, hiring a contractor, handling cost estimating and bidding, ensuring that contractors are building your project per the design drawings, and more! Phew, that was a lot!
We coordinate all of these things so that you can focus on the parts of designing your new home that are most exciting: celebrating connections to the outdoors, a kitchen filled with joy, bathrooms that are your own personal spa, that sweet little sauna you’ve had on your wish-list, and so much more. We also provide Passive House (PHIUS) and other green building services to create a home that takes holistic site stewardship and the carbon impact of construction seriously.
Commercial Projects
Whether you’re a first-time commercial developer or an experienced owner, commercial new construction is a serious business proposition and time investment.
For commercial projects we are hands-on, from site design, pre-application meetings, and land use applications with the city, through design, permitting and construction administration.
We are experienced at bringing commercial projects to the finish line, negotiating the complex issues that can follow these projects through permitting and construction. We have a robust network of engineers experienced at all types and scales of project, and we create a custom design team for each project, based on the unique challenges presented.