People oriented design

We strive to design homes for people rather than for developers’ ease or architectural zeal.

For the past 100 years at least, homes were built to suit the building trade rather than the owner. Since the architect and contractor don’t need to live in the home—heat it, cool it, supply it with water and energy—their task is done when they hand you the keys. As a result, homes came with oversized heating and cooling systems, too little insulation, poor quality windows, and, most importantly, orientations based upon the lot size, convenient building layouts, or curb appeal. Building codes have become more stringent and buildings have markedly improved.

Yet we must bear in mind that building codes are the bottom limit--the worst we can do--in designing and building your home.

Since the market demands it, the bottom line for quality control is up front cost, rather than the accumulated, life-cycle costs of living in that house. Imagine what homes would be like if the builders had to live in them.

So as we contemplate improvements, we are again confronted with building choices. If your home is too cold, the standard building industry solution is a larger furnace or air conditioner. But a people-centered solution may be to install additional insulation in the ceilings and possibly walls. Tightening up the home’s shell keeps you, the inhabitant, more comfortable without blowing hot (or frigid) air on your head and spending energy dollars each winter stoking that furnace or running that A/C.

As another example, if your house is too dark, the typical solution you might get is to add lighting. This is a technical solution to a known problem with guaranteed results: this amount of light over this size an area, etc.

However, people feel better, can read easier, under daylight rather than artificial light. So it may be beneficial for your family to be illuminated by daylight through skylights or tubular light pipes rather than artificial lighting. This will also benefit you in the life cycle cost since daylighting is free after the fixture is installed.

People-oriented also means a healthy indoor environment. The EPA reports that unhealthy air is found in up to 30 percent of new and renovated buildings.

As we improve your home, the kind of materials and finishes we use will be reviewed and screened for particulates, VOC off gassing, formaldehyde, pesticides, and any other content presenting a health hazard.