Can you find the original Center Hall Colonial or Rambler in these photos?
It is possible to turn an average house into a spectacular living space! Visit our recently updated web site to see more photos of two wonderful Home Renovation/Addition projects in Bethesda, MD.
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Of course, the answer is a resounding yes. Archaeon routinely combines traditional and classical detailing with modern amenities and spaces. From historic preservation and mixed use adaptation of century old structures in Downtown Washington, DC, to upgrading a home originally substantially void of detail in Northern, VA, to expanding a Cape Cod in Bethesda – Chevy Chase, MD, we can help, always integrating the latest in “Green” design technology.
So, what is the future of home construction in Bethesda? Our office has been designing homes in Bethesda for the past thirty years and even we’re not completely sure. Certain trends do seem consistent across the country. Everyone seems to be gravitating toward sustainable or “green” design. And due to the economy, most people are re-prioritizing – staying put or deciding they don’t need as much house as they thought. But what is Bethesda’s future? This is something I think about often as both an architect working in Bethesda, as well as a local homeowner.
Relative to most other places in the country, we’ve been fortunate, as property values have remained fairly stable. And it seems very possible that the downtrend in home sales may have bottomed. My wife has noted several “Under Contract” signs around our neighborhood – even on homes that had been on the market for the last twelve months or longer. So, the question for local architects is, as the market rebounds, where will the next economic up-trend take the local construction market? I don’t know, but I have a theory.
One weekend, I was strolling my youngest son through the side streets around Whitman High School, noting the neighborhood’s beautiful tree lined streets and it’s mixture of colonials, ramblers and capes. All in all I thought, a pretty nice little neighborhood. And then it hit me – most of these houses were built during an era when people valued land over floor area – these houses are kind of small by today’s standards. That’s when it occurred to me that the future of residential construction in Bethesda just might be heavily weighted toward renovations and additions in its many similar subdivisions.
The simple truth is that a lot of these houses, though beautiful, no longer meet the average homeowner’s expectation for kitchen size, communal living space, bedroom and bathroom size, etc. And the population will probably continue to trend younger as baby boomers downsize and sell their homes to young professionals with kids – not unlike my family – relocating to the area for the consistent appreciation in property values, convenient proximity to DC and downtown Bethesda, and quality public schools. And the bottom line is this younger crowd of up-and-comers will probably buy these homes for the location and then modify and expand them according to their specific needs and modern norms.
Bethesda Residence: Renovation & Addition Project
So then, why will this lead to a spike in addition and renovation work versus knocking-down and building of new single-family homes? While new homes will undoubtedly continue to be erected – especially in so affluent an area – I think renovation and addition will increase dramatically for a few reasons. Primarily, new construction is more expensive. Another contributing factor may be new restrictions on lot coverage in Montgomery County for R-60 and R-90 zones.
As of April 28, 2008, lot coverage for these zones were reduced from 35% to 30%. This means that leveling your house or proposing a renovation that triggers infill restrictions, may reduce the amount of house that you can build, whereas if you maintain the existing home and add on, you’re still grandfathered in for your 35% lot coverage. This may not seem like a big deal, but as I stated early, floor area seems to be king these days. And even on a small R-60 lot of 6000 square feet, five percent can mean 300 square feet of lost floor area (that’s about the size of decent family room).
Finally, people may opt to add-on, rather than tear down, because, as stated earlier, a lot of these houses are attractive and may possess a character that the owner wishes to preserve. This is certainly easier and more cost effective than attempting to recreate these qualities in a newly constructed home.
In closing, I will only state that I have no supernatural powers that enable me to foretell the future. Whatever form the market takes, homeowners and architects alike in DC metro can consider themselves fortunate that the worst appears to over.
HOME OFFICE DESIGN is “GREEN” DESIGN – Not just a desk in a bedroom or basement any more!
With high speed internet access, video conferencing and other hi-tech telecommunication systems available to all, more people are working from home, either full or part time, making the “Virtual Office” commonplace, saving energy, time, and reducing one’s carbon footprint.
Work environments in the home have evolved to meet the demands of every type of office worker, from the part time entrepreneur at a desk integrated into a kitchen breakfast room, to a multi-employee, dedicated professional office.
These spaces can be dramatic, light filled, wonderful environments, providing all the necessities of the typical office, with the comfort and advantages of being at home.
The home office also allows the worker the ability to multi task, remain involved with children and other family responsibilities, and blend work and personal time, as required to meet the families particular schedule.
There’s no reason to settle for a work space without the beauty and comfort of home.
When I first heard about LEED, I thought it was generally a great idea. What could be better than a points system based on specific criteria for sustainable sites, water efficiency, etc. that would allow people to create new or convert existing buildings into paragons of green excellence? And in large part, this is exactly what LEED offers. They have different certifications for new construction, homes, so on and so forth. The building owner has an opportunity to save money by reducing their energy & water consumption, not to mention the added bonus of helping to save the world. Sounds pretty good, right?
The only question, especially for an office like ours that has been doing sustainable design for the past thirty years – long before it was cool, is what on Earth for? Why become a LEED AP architect? Why should I suggest LEED certification for my client’s building?
Well, if you’re doing a commercial project, there could be plenty of good reasons. Depending on where you are, a commercial building owner could realize a significant reduction in property taxes or other incentives for obtaining LEED certification.
But what if you’re not doing some big commercial project? What if you’re just building you’re own house? What’s the incentive or advantage then? We asked this question last month at a seminar our office attended on green guidelines and rating systems. Believe it or not, the presenter, who shall remain nameless, after a moments hesitation, said the following: “Bragging rights.”
Can you say that again? Not sure I heard it. “Bragging rights”? Imagine the following scene, if you will:
It’s Sunday morning, and Phil is outside raking the gravel on the pervious driveway in front of his brand new environmentally conscious home.
His next door neighbor, Cindy, wearing a bathrobe and fluffy bunny slippers, emerges from her front door and walks to the curb to retrieve her morning newspaper.
Noticing Phil, Cindy gives a friendly wave and comments on what a beautiful day it is.
Phil smugly replies, “I have a LEED platinum certified home, loser. Enjoy your newspaper, you insensitive Earth-killer.”
By now, you’re probably saying to yourself, wow – this guy really has it in for LEED. And by way of reply, I would say, no, I don’t. But I do have have some definite issues with it.
As stated above, there are to this point no monetary incentives or other benefits to an owner building a LEED certified home. This in and of itself is not a big deal – I don’t believe that there has to be a financial basis for doing the right thing. However, by the same token, it shouldn’t be cost prohibitive either.
The problem is that the certification process is costly to the owner, and thereby seems to punish him/her for wanting to do something positive. On top of the costs of retaining the services of an architect and contractor, the owner must also pay a LEED consultant throughout the project and a green rater furnished by a “Provider” (A green rater is a third party who verifies the work and performance twice during the project). Additionally, the owner must pay to have the project registered and then pay again to have it certified.
For all this, the owner gets “Bragging rights”(yippee), a plaque, and the environmentally friendly home the architect should provide them with regardless of LEED – as we have always done and will continue to do.
In conclusion, I would simply suggest to someone building their own home that LEED certification , at this point, is not worth the time or expense. However, if you must have certification of some kind, Energy Star seems to be less onerous and less expensive. Energy Star is also administered through the EPA and DOE, whereas LEED is administered through the US Green Building Council, which is a 501(c)3. This may explain their need to charge fees for everything under the sun from registration and certification fees to membership fees and study materials (for professionals seeking certification) to pay for overhead.