Ottawa Townhomes design rounding into shape

Our design of a 4 unit townhouse project in the Heritage Harbor development in Ottawa, Illinois is nearing completion and is proving to be a unique product for this resort community.

View from street

A major decision in the design was our attempt to create a courtyard and to activate outdoor space on the street side of the main structure.  By detaching the garage and pushing it as close to the street as possible allows that space to exist between the the house and the garage.  A 4 foot high cedar fence with 1" spaces between the planks provides a measure of security for the Owners while allowing passersby on the street to get a glimpse of activity within the courtyard.  It is a fine balance to strike between privacy and community.

Courtyard View

From a sales perspective, the courtyard adds a space that exists nowhere else in the Heritage Harbor.  The one story, flat roofed garages add scale to the street and helps to break down the mass of the complex and provide a frame of view leading to the entry of the townhouse itself.  The screen porch for each unit is oriented towards the courtyard and visually support the entry piece.  The entry piece is a two story, glass faced rectangular mass that reveals a open rail metal stair and a glimpse of the view to the river beyond.  It will look like a beacon at night.

On the river side of the project, each unit steps back to follow the profile of the property along the lake and orients the view of each unit through a corner window towards the mouth of the cove to the Illinois River to the east.  The profile on the land drops 10 feet from the street side to the river side, providing the opportunity to add a lower level walkout.  The main living level presents panoramic views through continuous bands of floor to ceiling windows and access to an adjacent projecting balcony.  The two end units have first level master bedroom suite that also in directed towards the river view. All other bedrooms are located on the second floor and also face the river.

River side view

We are still working on and making adjustments to the project, but at some point we have to stop designing, finish the drawings and build it!  City of Ottawa is currently reviewing the design, which is a departure for anything that has preceded it in the development, thus a little challenging for them.  We are getting full support on the design from Rich Bridges and the entire Heritage Harbor team, who see this as a positive progression from the first generation of development.

Peter Nicholas

peter@nicholasdc.com

Periscope under siege

Armed with bobcat and willing de-constructors, demolition has begun on the Periscope House.  The existing garage was knocked down in about 2 minutes and we are saving bricks for extending the garden wall in the back.  All the concrete will be recycled.

Rear of the house under attack

What it will look like after the mayhem

The wood structure and masonry enclosing the existing structure will be preserved and reused, the windows and cladding will be removed and replaced.  Hard to imagine that it will end up like the rendering!

The forecourt, which will be reduced in size to accommodate the new family room, needed to have the concrete broken up and removed so that we can put in concrete footings and foundations for the new room.  We also are going to need to get access for the new utilities that we will be bringing including the new water service.

opening cut through the front wall of the existing house to allow access for the bobcat to break up the existing concrete

approximately 50% of the courtyard will be enclosed for the family room

Next up, footings and foundations, followed by underground plumbing. 

A vacation spot with a (point of) view

NDC is pleased to announce that we are currently working with our friends at Entre' Partners on a new 4 unit townhouse project in the Heritage Harbor Development in Ottawa, Illinois.  http://www.heritageharborottawa.com/

Positioned overlooking an unspoiled cove off of the Illinois river which is protected by an untouched wooded penninsula, we will be creating a project that takes full advantage of the water view afforded by it's elevated perch.  Units will be offered as 2, 3 and 4 bedroom unit pre-construction with construction anticipated to start this fall.

I took at hiking trip with my son Willy to Starved Rock National Park, which is a short drive from Heritage Harbor where I discovered the beauty of the area and convenience from Chicago, which is 90 minutes away.

Heritage Harbor Townhomes - Entry courtyard, screen porch, Entry

The product we will be offering is unique, some would say with a bit of an urban edge; I would say as a studied derivative of farmhouse vernacular so prevalent in rural Illinois. Our project will take full advantage of the site and will offer flexible space, courtyards, great views, lots of space for entertaining and a design provides a private meditative environment to unwind in.

Although we are in the early stages of development, we are excited to working on a project with such great potential.  Heritage Harbor teams members Rich Bridges, Mike Sitterly and Tom Heimsoth have been supportive and sympathetic to our ideas which we are appreciative of, and it will help us to take advantage of the potential this setting has to offer.

Heritage Harbor Townhomes - South elevation facing water views

Periscope Down - Under Contract!

Within 2 weeks after listing the Periscope House on MLS, we have a signed purchase agreement with a wonderful and excited couple. Construction of the project will begin mid-October with an anticipated completion date of June 1 or before. 

The buyers are looking forward in participating in the process of construction and selection of finishes with us as we tune it to meet their level of style and taste.  They see themselves as stewards of modern architecture and are anxious to start living in a house that effectively takes advantage of exterior space as an extension of the interior.  We are thrilled to have people that appreciate and understand the house, how it was designed and want to take advantage of what it offers as a living experience.

This is a custom house on every level, except that it was designed not to a specific customer, but instead to most favorable use of the existing conditions of the site and the surrounding context.  The scale and composition of the building was considered as a direct response to the surrounding neighborhood; not to blend in, but to create a counterpoint.

The fact that the form of the building and the layout of the rooms was designed prior to having a buyer in an ideal situation for many buyers in that the majority of the decision making has already been made, however, because it has not yet been built, it allows us to be flexible on the selection of finishes.  The design process can be a time consuming and difficult process for a client and many (I would guess most) buyers would like to eliminate the uncertainty by seeing a finished house.  Because of the tools that we have as architects, we are able to create accurate, lifelike renderings shown in context, so although the buyer can't walk through the finished product, they can get an accurate feel for what the project will be.  That worked for these buyers and as we found out during the sales process and the enthusiastic response by potential buyers, it also worked for several others.

We love the way the process has worked on this project and we are actively looking for new projects to create other one-of-a-kind modern projects.  As soon as we figure out the next one, we will post some images.  In the meantime, we will be posting images as Periscope is being build.

Peter Nicholas

Work on 507 W. Roscoe begins

Front Facade

NDC is starting on this new project located at 507 W. Roscoe in Chicago. The project is the renovation of a 3,400 square foot, 5 bedroom, 4 bathroom vintage condominum. The size and width of the unit is highly unusual in Chicago and we are very excited to get started on the update, which hasn't been done in many, many years.

Existing Kitchen

Our clients love to cook and the expansion of the existing kitchen is the first priority.  They "keep kosher" in the kitchen and we have lots of experience with kosher kitchens, so that it will be fun to combine the ancient religious requirements with modern living and entertaining for this young active couple.

Living Room

In general, we would like to open the unit up to gain more daylight, but would also like to keep the character and proportion of the grandly scaled living and dining spaces.

We have measured and documented the existing conditions and have started on the creating preliminary design options to help our clients establish their budget and priortiies.  Stay tuned. 

More Pub for PERISCOPE

This article was published this morning on the Online Magazine, DNAinfo Chicago. Edgewater, the community in which the Periscope House will be built is an amazing, vibrant, diverse area. I have watched the commercial area along Broadway change overnight. It is becoming the new Andersonville. My kids are pissed at me because they want to move in. Ha!

for more information go to periscopehouse.com 

PERISCOPE UP (for sale)!

Front Elevation

 The Periscope House, located at 5833 N. Magnolia Avenue in the Edgewater Glen neighborhood of Chicago is officially available for purchase!  This transformation of an unremarkable 1970's era house into a green, one of a kind 4 bedroom, 3 bath single family residence that takes full advantage of its over sized urban lot and existing garden walls into a completely unique city compound. Steps from every city convenience but private and peaceful, its the perfect mix for the urban dweller.

Forecourt at night

Designed by NDC, developed by NDC founder Peter Nicholas and to be built by our Design-Build entity, NCA Build, the Periscope House will be meticulously detailed and built to meet the vision of what infill development should be.  We are looking to partner with a buyer that would like to participate in the selection of interior finishes and the construction of an iconic piece of modern architecture.

Living Room as viewed from Dining Room

For more information visit www.periscopehouse.com 

Architectural Burlesque

Burlesque is not about what you see, but about what you don't see.  Architects would be wise to abide by the rules of an effective burlesque routine when designing a house. Why give it all up right away when the anticipation of an architectural strip tease is much more exciting and satisfying to the the audience?

The Washington Place Residence performs this architectural act by using the procession from public to private as the vehicle of revelation for this house which closely conspires with the site to let the drama of discovery unfold.

Anyone who has visited San Diego know the reason that people love to live and vacation there is due to the mild climate which many believe is the best in the world.  It stands to reason that when designing a house in such a place, one should, whenever possible, incorporate and take advantage of this desirable environment.

The property of the Washington Place Residence has a large level area which fronts the street on which it sits, but approximately 1/3 of the property is on a steep slope into a canyon lined with Eucalyptus trees with open vistas,  The program for the house is large (close to 5,000 sf.), and given the size of the property, would need to be planned on two levels.

There were two ideas that need to be addressed in the design; how to take advantage of canyon views while providing a visually private outdoor area.  Essentially the house needed to embrace two different personalities, open and closed; introverted and extroverted; protected and unprotected.  When approaching the house from the street, the visitor is presented with a garden wall with two separate 2 car garages that engage this garden wall.  This entry area ground plane, which would otherwise be an impervious paved area, due to the access requirement for the garages is instead paved with a landscaped driving surface which retains water and presents a landscaped area while allowing a drivable surface for vehicles which is good environmentally as well as attractive  The initial approach to the property is decidedly closed, concealing little of what will unfold behind the front wall, much in the tradition of a traditional Mexican courtyard house.  Once the visitor is allowed access beyond the centered front gate a private, enclosed courtyard unfolds. 

​Courtyard

This introverted courtyard provides protection from the street and is framed by a one story guest house and what appears to be a one story main house, set 43' back from the street wall. A linear fountain reinforces the symmetrical approach to the main house beyond.  Little is revealed about the size of the house or the presence of the Canyon that lies beyond.  When entering the house, the entry foyer is fronted by a large natural stone faced fireplace that anchors the center of the house.  It is not until one ventures beyond the Foyer that the view of the canyon is revealed.  The canyon view is reinforced by an ascending ceiling plane that guides the eye toward the expansive canyon.  On the entry level, living, dining and kitchen spaces flow freely and open to a large balcony that spans the width of the building, encouraging opportunities to take advantage of this compelling extension to the interior spaces.  The master bedroom suite is is also conveniently located on this floor.

​Canyon Elevation

The second level, which is positioned below the main living level contains an additional 3 bedrooms and 3 bathroom, an additional living space and other support spaces.  The decision to place the bedroom level below the main level is consistent with the experiential unfolding of the project which starts from the arrival at the street.  The size of the house and the property, which are much larger than the its older neighbors is presented in a modest way.  Our approach is to blend in, not to dominate.  The house is about the living experience for the Owners and their guests and the embrace of the land and site conditions.  

The intention is not to be demonstrative, but discrete. Architectural burlesque indeed.

For more information go to: https://nicholasdc.squarespace.com/projects/canyon-house