Attached model experiments by Mark Ashby
We’re going ahead with a new attached duplex design! Here’s why:
- The attached option addresses some neighbours’ concern that the small lot house would have been too close to our neighbours. The attached option creates more space on the sides and fits better on our lot.
- The attached option provides more distance to the large Garry oak in the adjacent yard to the south – better for its roots and less shade for our rooftop solar photovoltaics.
- I’ve identified at least a couple of lending options that are viable for the attached option.
- The massing is better for energy performance (less exterior walls = less energy lost through the envelope).
- The approval process is simpler – we can meet the two-family zoning regulations with fewer variances and no longer need to collect petition signatures.
- The city fees for the rezoning application are lower and we eliminate city subdivision fees (which amounts to savings of $5,000-$8000).
If we were set on the small lot subdivision option and were willing to wait a while, we might have been able to get it through. But the attached option does meet our needs and we do want to get the project going, so it felt like the best solution given the circumstances.
The design in now in progress and we’ll share renderings soon. One of the debates we’ve had is how to design an addition to an old existing house. Do we blend the design so that it looks like one unified whole? I think if we were designing from scratch we would do that. But to make the structure look like a unified whole, we actually would have to change the form of the existing house dramatically – particularly the roof.
We believe that the best way to honour the existing home and to retain as much of its existing structure as possible is to create a marked distinction between new and old. Mark A is taking a sculptural approach to the addition to contrast with the existing form and work with the existing roofline. Not an easy task, and we’re thankful we have an architect like Mark working out the details.
I had hoped to present the design at the mid-August Fairfield Gonzales Community Association Land Use Committee (CALUC), but discovered that the committee has been disbanded. Well, temporarily at least, as the group reconciles its status as a charity organization with its role in land use development issues. I am attending a community meeting to learn more. Stay tuned and in the meantime, enjoy the sun!
Very interesting development (as it were)! This sounds like a sensible way to move ahead with your project and will still create something exciting in the neighbourhood. But easier for the neighbours to live with.
Cool! Very exciting!! And by far, my most preferred option 😉 Good for energy efficiency, and I’m sure you’ll include good sound proofing to make it seem like separate dwellings. Fantastic compromise and collaboration with all the interested parties. A sigh of relief, eh?!