Another week has passed and more progress has been made. Last week I met with Rick Hauser of In Site Architecture. I found Rick through the Not So Big House web site which has a list of architects and builders who subscribe to the Not So Big philosophy. As I expected Rick quickly began to talk about a lot of the principles that Sarah Susanka has put forth. Rick believes strongly that a house must relate to it's site and he puts a huge effort into locating a house on the site to take advantage of it's unique qualities. Like Chait Studios, Rick works frequently with select builders that he trusts with his designs. Rick also has a lot of expertise in green design and green building as well as LEED certification. While I don't think we will end up pursuing any certifications we would like to take advantage of green design where it makes sense.
After meeting with Rick my one major concern was the style of houses that I saw in his portfolio and on his web site. Almost all of the designs I saw had a very "modern" feel to them. Wendy and I are both interested in a very traditional design and I wanted to make sure that Rick felt comfortable with that. I expressed this concern in a follow up email and was quite pleased when he responded with an offer to come down and see two houses he designed that were much more traditional forms. (on a holiday weekend no less!)
So, today Wendy and Ryan and I drove down to Geneseo, NY to see the two houses. The first one we saw is currently in the framing stage of construction and fit very nicely with the site and the large horse barn that the owners had just constructed. As we walked through the house Rick was able to point out many unique solutions that his team had come up with to meet the home owners wants and needs.
The second house we visited was a 4,000 square foot "cottage" on Silver Lake. Immediately we were impressed with the design and the craftsmanship with which the house was built but what we really liked was the fact that it was a "shingle style" cottage which is the style we have been leaning towards recently. Our only concern had been Rick's ability to work in a traditional style and here before us was a gleaming example of the style that we are most interested in!
Overall it was a really fun afternoon and I think we are very close to making a decision on our architect. It won't be long before we finally get the design process under way.
