I can’t recall if I’ve written about this project or not. Years ago, I did a project for these clients in this house, enclosing a carport to be a garage. That was successful. But the owners soon had to relocate for work, and the house was rented out. They’ve returned […]
What an Architect does
104 posts
This project in Danville was recently completed.The project was to build a pied a terre for the owners of the home, who would hand over the main house to their children. This would allow them to be able to help care for their grandchild and to be able to lock […]
“Gas meter locations! Be still my heart,” I hear you saying. I can just imagine you are trembling in anticipation of this gas meter location story! What excitement! Not really. Right? Well, this is the reality of construction. Sometimes it is the most plebeian of things that make life, shall […]
A while back I was interviewed by Emily Landes, a journalist, who was writing an article about trends in apartment design. It was an interesting to be interviewed and the subject was engaging. This month the article she was writing, “Find The Flow”, appeared in SF Apartment Magazine, the monthly […]
October is National Architecture Month, also known in some circles as Archtober. To commemorate the month, I am going to post a brief post every day of the month. October has been Architecture Month. At the very last minute, October 1st to be precise, I decided to jump into the […]
October is National Architecture Month, also known in some circles as Archtober. To commemorate the month, I am going to post a brief post every day of the month. Materials are essential in determining the character of a place. The decision between one material or another can mean that a […]
The following images were made this week as I was working on a small cottage project that was recently re-started by the clients after a break of almost 2 years. In the intervening years, the building code changed and the Oakland’s planning regulations changed, so we had to make some […]
As architects we do a lot of different things. It’s more than making drawings. As an example, in August I finished the permit drawings for a commercial project in San Francisco, an accessory dwelling unit in Sunnyvale, the conversion of an existing garage into an accessory dwelling unit in Oakland. […]
I’ve written about the ever changing building codes before. They are updated with changes every three years. California just adopted the 2016 Building Code, with the State’s own amendments, in January of 2017. I am now preparing the documents for projects which will be the first projects for which I […]
There is nothing more gratifying to an architect than when an old client returns with a new project. That recently happened to me. A client for whom I designed a sizable remodel and addition about 15 years ago, recently contacted me about a project they have in mind: a brand […]
The project in Danville is under construction and the contractor is making good time. I was out to the site last week to look at the construction, answer questions, and take some pictures. As a reminder, this is a 900 square foot addition to a 1950’s house. The addition is […]
With the recent changes to state law regarding Accessory Dwelling Units, you can see how various municipalities are dealing with changing their planning ordinances to come into compliance with the state legislation. In Oakland, they are allowing development within a house, and development attached to a house. They are allowing […]
In California right now, there is a significant amount of interest in “accessory dwelling units” (ADUs). These used to be called “granny flats”, “in-law units”, or “back yard cottages”. Now they are most commonly called “accessory dwelling units” or “secondary dwelling units”. By definition, an ADU is a smaller dwelling […]
Thanks to everybody who came out to the San Francisco Earthquake Safety Fair last Thursday. It was a very successful event. I shared a booth with Mike Miranda of MEMGC, a contractor with whom I’ve worked for a while. Mike is something of a force of nature once he gets […]
Are you thinking about working on a project in San Francisco? It could be remodeling, or legalizing an in-law unit. Maybe you are thinking about adding a rental unit. Whatever it is, you probably have lots of questions. This week there is an event at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium […]
The project in Danville, adding a retirement apartment for the owners onto a house they will be deeding over to their children, has finally broken ground. This project has been in my studio since the late Autumn of 2015. We applied for permits back in the early Autumn of 2016. We […]
Projects are rarely, if ever, perfect from their immediate conception. Some come together quickly. Others take longer. This project in Berkeley is somewhere in between. But it is coming together fairly quickly. We are working within the city’s planning regulations for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). The projects need to be […]
Every project has it’s own pace. Some are quick. Some are slow. Some hit road blocks. Some are paused and come back. One of my projects, which had been put on “hold” back in December, has come back to life. The project is in Sunnyvale. It was a project that […]
Do you like watching HGTV or DIYTV? If you do, you are going to LOVE Grand Designs, a British TV series now in it’s 17th season. I discovered it streaming on NetFlix. I believe the current season may be available on Hulu. Some episodes are available on YouTube. It’s worth […]
I kicked off a new project about a month ago. It is for a backyard cottage, an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU), in Berkeley. We have been working on getting the plan arrangements right. Still in Schematic Design, I’m starting to look at what this little house might look like. The […]