Creating Your Home

1. Most projects are developed by a builder as a place where he alone can build. As there are no builders or architects in The Shaker Bay Partnership you have a choice of both of architects and of builders.
2. Our primary approach is architect-based, as the architect is where the real differences come from. With his plans, specifications and supervision, the process of bidding between reliable builders often saves more than cost of the architect.
3. The sensibilities of the project by which all designs are judged are illustrated in the portfolios. They include examples of houses appropriate for each of the diverse sites, examples of rejected sketch plans with suggested revisions and illustrations of design and landscape principles.
4. Each site has a different height and size limit to prevent houses from overstuffing and urbanizing the landscape. There are restrictions against vinyl or aluminum doors or siding, asphalt or fiberglass roofing, pop out window muntins and fake stone or slate.
5. Rarely there may be a canned plan or pictures of a house somewhere which exactly suits the site, the sensibilities of the portfolio and the life of the buyer. In such pictures or plans, real design talent is already present, but without an ongoing understanding, there is almost inevitably a dumbing down of the very proportions, symmetry or detailing that made the original great.
6. Procedurally a refundable $5,000 deposit holds the site while architects are interviewed and sketch plans are proposed. Although architects can estimate costs based on other houses, final bids will vary greatly between comparable builders. Approval of house sketches and a plot plan appreciative of the natural landscape must precede any contract. Changes in final plans must be approved prior to construction. No approval is required for interior space. The portfolios are designed both as a guarantee against wasted time on rejected design and against surprise incongruity happening on the site next door. The right architect is your best key to an enjoyable experience.