Design Process

Paul and I met up on Saturday to start on a more intensive brainstorm so he could start working on the plan. So far, the initial drawings from the other architect firm were for a duplex and since we're now going with a single unit, we're pretty much starting from scratch.

Originally there were two options of buildable area approved by the city, depending on where we choose the front, side and back yard to be. For the duplex, Option 1 was used because the squarish shape of 2 units combined. However, the building was placed about 28 feet away from the neighbor, and therefore also sit a little lower relatively to the street. Paul suggested using Option 2, which brings the building closer to the neighbor (avoiding a big gap compared to the houses on the block,) and it will be built a few feet higher on the ground. Another reason is that we'll have a much smaller yard on the south-side between 2 buildings, which is part of my requirement. The area between the neighbor and this house will be fenced for the dog to go out and do it's business. The view is on the North towards downtown, and most big windows will face that direction and most south facing windows will be frosted.

After crunching the numbers closely, we've decided to keep the house right around 1,500 square feet. With a set limitation, suddenly, the design has be more creative/challenging in order to fit the program of the space into the floor plan. I'm all for a modest size home from the get go because it suits our lifestyle and it is the right thing to do for the environment. I think with the open floor plan, 9-foot ceiling and a few big windows, the space will appear to be larger than what we would imagine.

After about 3 hours of sketches and brainstorming, Paul immediately came back with the plan the following day and I'm very impressed by how he managed to fit everything in and make it an interesting space.

Due to the drastic change of elevation (about 15 feet) between the front an back, in order to build the garage entrance on the back of the house, even though it is on basement level, it still needs a pretty steep driveway. Moreover, there's more digging which will cost more. By moving the driveway to front, and the entrance of the garage to the north side of the house, it's almost street level. Now the deck on the primary living level will also double as a porch in front of the garage.

One main feature we modified is the staircase. Since the width of the house has been reduced to 20 feet, we have to reposition the stairs I think Paul came up with an igneous solution which maintain its appeal.

As for the upper level, I requested for a closet for washer/dryer, but Paul gave me a whole laundry room with a sink in it! I love it! As for the space upstairs, the concept is to have sliding panels that separate the bedroom from the library/lounge area, but when open (when there's no guests), the whole upper level turns into a master suite loft. I think a dynamic use of space not only maximizing the usage for a smaller home, it makes the space more interactive and exciting.

As for the lower level, thanks to Paul for taking into consideration of my request of having a storm shelter. He even pointed out that the southwest corner of the house is the safest hiding place should there be a tornado. If there's anything I would change, the Studio is the only area that seems to be a little too small. This is a key thing for this house as it is going to be Eric's space and we need to definitely address it to add more square footage to it.

I think the design is very close. We're about 90% there. I very excited about the progress.

First On-site Meeting

Paul and I met on-site for the first time so we could figure out where the house should be located on the lot. The lot is neither square nor even. It is anything but conventional. Perhaps, it's why it has been vacant for at least half a century. According to Scott, apparently I was told that an archival photograph taken in the 20s shows a house was once there.
Even though we have a detail surveyed plan, being there at the lot sparked several new ideas. I can't wait what Paul is going to come up.

In the beginning...

It seems a little daunting that I'm finally at a point to start documenting the project that I've been steeping in my head for over a year. It all started when a good friend of mine bought this newly built modern home, and that was how I made the initial phone call to the developer, Scott, and asked if he has any more of the similar projects on the horizon. He told me that he just got a lot between Central and Wyandotte in midtown, and he's going to build a multiple unit condos, each of them comes with a one car garage. I immediately scratched out the possiblity because part of my requirements is to have a 2-car garage if I'm going to live in the urban area.

A few months later, I met up with Scott, and he'd told me that he only got approval from the city to build a duplex instead and therefore there's enough space to build a 2-car garage for each unit. With that, I'm back into the picture. However, the waiting game began. At first, I was told that sometime in late summer the project would be completed. In mid July, 2006, I finally received an electronic copy of the plan which was designed by g3 Collaborative LLC. It was good enough as a starting point and price was right, so that is a big step closer to just talking about it, but now the deadline moved back to late fall.

Then, the waiting continued. Meantime, I took the files I had and modified the plans to better suit my program. A couple of times. Maybe four. The right around the New Year of 2007, Scott informed me that he's desolving his company and moving East. He offered me to purchase the lot and take over the project. And I accepted.

I immediately contacted Paul, a good friend of mine, the owner of Urban Prairie, to see if he's interested in becoming my partner in this business venture. We would build a duplex, and I will take one unit and we would sell the other. It didn't take him long to say he's in.

After seeking more advice from Paul's attorney, we found out that building two units on a single lot (which is too small for the city to split into two,) is going to complicate things and may cost more in legal fee to ensure the co-ownership of the lot is a smooth one, and perhaps lowering the value of the homes. Further more, it will delay the project even longer. After much consideration, we've come to the conclusion to just build a single family home. I think in the end, it is more sound investement. I signed a contract with Scott a couple of weeks ago and the closing date on the lot is scheduled to be at the end of May.

Paul will still be the architect for the project, and I'll just have to make sure to get a loan for this project. Of course, we will hire a contractor to build the house. As for right now, we're in the design process. With a drawing, I can then take it to the bank. Frankly, this is not my favorite part of the process. I'm a designer and I'd much rather picking out the finishing of a faucet and then talking to the loan officer. However, we can't do anything without any money. It will be a steep learning curve for me because the current home that I'm living in is my first home.

So without really going any long on this first chapter of the Genesis, here's in a nutshell, of how the project began. There's a long unknown future ahead of me, and some of it promissing, but others, I need a lot of luck. Therefore, I'm diving in with much faith. Hopefully a year from now, this blog will be conluded, and Eric and I will be living in our new home on Central.