Showing posts with label Construction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Construction. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Endless Summer

Magazine Spread

Shameless Self Promotion or discussion on how to get there



Today's submittal is way less about self-promotion and more about a great team brought together to make something amazingly unique and beautiful.  Under the direction of Julia Sanford @ Starr Sanford Design, this team created a stunningly beautiful residence.  Apparently so interesting, Jacksonville magazine decided to cover it in a really great spread this past month.

Take the jump to see more about this project !




What is so great about this particular project, was the local talent.  From the lead designer Julia Sanford, to the technical production & Architecture by Architect Peyman Abadi and Master Builder Jeff Brecko with Aurora, and to continue, we must include the Clients who had the foresight and wisdom to trust their house and design in someone else's hands.



From the before to the after, there is a lot of trust put in a Designer's or Architect's hands.  We are in charge of a family's savings and hard work.  If we go over budget, the project may never even be built, and we have designed for naught.  We also have to be very careful not to over build, or design to show off our own ego.


Great Architecture, should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness -Frank Gehry


One of my favorite Architects (Frank Gehry) speaks so eloquently about the timelessness of our craft.  If the clients with the house pictured above decided to go with a Contemporary home in a traditional neighborhood... how long would any of us love the house? Would the neighbors love us for doing that to their street?  Let's imagine plopping a modern sleek, concrete poured and steel house right in a Classic Beach shingle community.  The house would be so out of place, and the neighbors would probably question our sanity, as well as stir up their Dandruff.  So designing to fit into the surrounding area is super important, we use the local Architectural language of the community to help guide our design, or risk losing neighbors as friends.



I question how long we will have individual Architectural language from each region.  If I were to make a prediction, it is that our Architecture is going to become as homogenized as our commercial landscape in America; countless miles of strip malls and big box stores, all the same in every city.  How long are we going to love this fashion trend in construction?  American's answer is usually just long enough to do some damage; like the suburbs.  Yes, they work well in theory, though totally car dependent, not walkable nor healthy for a true community.  We are turning around slightly.  Walkable communities with an urban shopping center are coming back in vogue.  



So how does this design fit into the neighborhood on a larger scale?  Julie did an amazing job designing this house to help speak the language of Florida's Northern Coast.  This house says "it is a part of the Ponte Vedra beach community and worthwhile".  I wonder what your house says?  Long story short, please do not build the white elephant on the block and Kudos to the design / construction team, as well as the Owner's. It is a beautiful home and a gorgeous story.

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

More Completed Construction

Completed Construction

From 2D to Real D



Today's submittal is a very well designed and built Carriage House in Florida. Working with Starr Sanford Design out of Jax Beach, FL; we accomplished an absolutely beautiful structure.  This 2 Bed, 2 Bath Carriage House features a Full Kitchen and Living room upstairs, while the 3 Bay garage downstairs holds all your toys and leads out to the covered porch on the House's Side entry, creating a fantastic Courtyard effect.

Take the jump to see more about this plan and others !






Friday, January 10, 2014

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Gifts to the Street, a very brief recognition and study in urban planning.

Gifts to the Street
A very brief recognition and study in urban planning… or, The problem I have with Huntsville's newest art installation.


It doesn't take a long jog or walk here in the South to recognize when a shady bench has been installed for pedestrians, especially in the summer time.  This photo taken this morning, shows just such an installation in the City of Huntsville, AL (taken on a cold Fall morning).  Why it's put there when it's cold, I'm not sure.  Still sounds like a good idea though, though for a moment,  let's consider the problem with putting our backs to the street.




Someone undoubtedly had the good idea to do some planters, a bench and playfully colored awnings.  Looks great right?  Now, what is harder to see in this photo is the downtown street JUST on the other side of this canvas awning.  There is absolutely zero chance I'll be able to relax on this bench, knowing cars are zipping just behind me a few feet away.  So here's to who ever had the good idea to make an art installation; great idea, poor planning.  We want to at least see the Ford that mows us down, and before I get lambasted for my critical thinking, please read on…
Pedestrians have every right to feel safe from these fast moving metal boxes on wheels.  We do not do so well when taking them on, "Mano e Mano".  So if we were to design in several very easy fixes into our streetscapes, we could easily become a much more walkable town, see general health and mental well being surge.  I do not hold a PHD, though it doesn't take a rocket scientist to recognize the benefits of healthy exercise such as walking to contribute to a community's good health and mental well being.

My proposal is to offer Pedestrians a more friendly bench, in the form of "Gifts to the street".  This is where the general edge your house or business stops being part of your property and falls more into the public realm.

In this picture, you can see a very old rock wall that denotes the edge of lawn, clearly defining the house's property and the public domain. The water service should give you an indication of the age of this streets cape   
What the above design gives pedestrians, is a place to sit that faces a sidewalk and the street.  There is a sidewalk with a grass border and street trees.  The street trees serve many functions.
  1. Shade in the summer
  2. Blocking wind in the winter, while allowing sun light through
  3. A mental and physical barrier from the street
Further more, on street parking offers yet another layer of protection for pedestrians.  So taking cues from long ago, you can see a much more safer "Gift" to the street, than the art installation.  Though this rock wall looks weathered, you can dress this up as much as you would like.  Look around you neighborhood and see how pedestrian friendly it is designed.


Thursday, September 19, 2013

2 houses, 3 doors down


Two Houses, 3 doors down,
It's pretty special to make a site visit to see two of my houses so close...


Bungalow #1 started Design months ago, we had a snag on setbacks, and have finally pulled a permit.  http://www.houzz.com/projects/292461/Bungalow-Design By clicking the link, you can see the design as well as the forms set up for the slab to be poured.




Bungalow #2 is well under way, with the footings and slab poured and curing.  Framing to come next. http://www.houzz.com/projects/330211/Bungalow--2  After the jump in the link, you can see the design of this house as well as construction photos.

I want to ask for you to check me out on Houzz and leave some feedback, so I'm just going to leave the links in this post and let you see the pictures of construction and design after the jump ;)











As always, you can contact me through my web site

I would like to give a special thanks to Renaissance Builders for their hard work and determination to get both of these projects off the ground.

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