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Open House Plan for a Small 20′ Wide House

Sean O'Hara — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 21:00:26 +0000

One of my favorite repeat clients called a few days ago and needed a plan for a small house to go on a 25' wide lot in Denver. The house itself could not be more than 20' wide. The client wanted a plan that would fit and would have 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, all on the main level.

We've done some other small affordable rental house designs for him in the past so I wanted to give him a plan that showed the minimum and keep it in a ranch house without a basement. I drew this quick sketch to show that you don't have to put the bedrooms side by side in a 2 bedroom.I also wanted to give access to the backyard that would be more than 30" wide.

As it turns out, the lot is actually wider than the 25' so we have even more options for the actual plan.

Originally posted 2010-10-14 18:09:22.

Minimum Room Sizes and Minimum Ceiling Heights

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:53 +0000

Occasionally when designing small residential units the question comes up about what the minimum size is for a room and what the minimum ceiling height needs to be.

For single family homes and duplexes we go to the 2006 International Residential Code. It states that each dwelling unit shall have at least one room with a minimum of 120 square feet. Other habitable rooms need to have at least 70 sf excepting kitchens. (Bathrooms, closets, halls and utility spaces are not considered habitable rooms so they're also exempt). In order to count the square footage towards the minimum it must have a flat ceiling over 7'-0" or you can count the area under a sloped ceiling from the point it hits 5'-0" and over.

There are also minimum ceiling height requirements under the 2006 IRC. Generally you need 7'-0" clear minimum. Beams spaced 4'-0" or more can be at 6'-6" above the floor. Where you have basements with no habitable spaces (bedrooms, kitchen, living, etc) the ceiling can be at 6'-8" and beams and ductwork can be at 6'-4". Where you have the sloped ceilings at least half the room needs to have a ceiling height over 7'-0". In bathrooms you need 6'-8" over the fixtures and a minimum of 30"x30" at that height where you have a showerhead.

The 2006 International Building Code kicks in for commercial buildings and buildings with more than 2 dwelling units. The room sizes are very similar to the IRC with a minimum of one habitable room over 120 sf and other habitable rooms needing to be 70 sf. Habitable rooms excepting the kitchen also have to be a minimum of 7'-0" wide and there needs to be 36" of clear space in front of counters and appliances.

On the minimum ceiling heights the IRC requires habitable spaces and corridors to be a minimum of 7'-6" and bathrooms, kitchens, storage areas and laundry areas can have ceilings at 7'-0" minimum. Where the ceiling slopes at least half the room needs to be over the minimum and you can't count any area under 5'-0" toward minimum room size. You can also furr down a ceiling to 7'-0" for up to 2/3 of the room.

I haven't utilized the rules for efficiency dwelling units but they exist in the 2006 IBC. For efficiency units you need a living room of not less than 220 sf and an additional 100 sf for occupants beyond 2. The unit has to have a closet. It also must have a kitchen sink, cooking appliance, refrigeration and a minimum of 30" in front of each appliance. It also must have its own bathroom with a water closet, lavatory and a bathtub or a shower.

Originally posted 2008-10-20 23:18:57.

Very Narrow Unit Plans for Apartments, Townhomes and Condos

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:48 +0000

Typically residential units are 20' wide or wider but on occasion we design units that are much narrower. The example above is only 13' wide (4 meters) with a total living area of 1,200 square feet or about 120 square meters. This is a townhome unit and would be bordered by other units on both sides. With a comfortable size room being at least 10 feet (3 meters) wide this configuration leads to four rooms that can have windows. Typically that means the living room, kitchen/dining and two bedrooms. This unit is set up with a shared upstairs bathroom that would work better if the second bedroom was primarily used as an office.

This unit is about the same size but slightly wider and less deep. It has two bathrooms upstairs and is slightly more efficent.

The difficulty with these small units is that the stair is not terribly efficient, it takes up a lot of space per unit. This client wanted townhome type condo units but if we had been able to use two common area stairs and 1,200 square foot flat units we would have had more options in the unit plans. A townhome unit also tends to necessitate an additional powder room per unit to avoid having guests using the upstairs bathrooms.

The narrowest that you can make a room in the International Building Code is 7' which provides a minimum unit width but a unit that narrow would be very hard to make inviting.

Originally posted 2009-12-26 00:50:16.

The Abbey on Adams: Structural Design for a Historic Building Remodel

Adam Denton — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 07:47:03 +0000

EVstudio was recently awarded the contract to provide structural engineering services for the remodeling of a luxury condo unit located in a historic brick church at 14^th and Adams in Denver. This church was repurposed as two unique luxury condo units in 2000. The scope of our services is the design of a new office floor “platform” and roof replacement in the bell tower.

The Bell Tower

The original construction of the bell tower appears to be triple wythe brick covered with a newer brick veneer at the exterior. The bell tower is braced on the south by the structure of what was the original congregation area which includes several magnificent heavy timber trusses (unfortunately hidden from view inside the condos). Because of the age of the brick and mortar beds, the main challenge with this project will be the design of the connection of the new structure to the historic brick walls so that the new loads do not overstress the original building components.

Further updates will follow as the project continues.

Design by Community: Laying the Groundwork for Innovative Housing Solutions Webinar

Elicia Ratajczyk — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 20:12:02 +0000

Elicia Ratajczyk, Associate at EVstudio will be moderating the August webinar for Housing Colorado next Tuesday (August 23rd) at 2pm. Housing Colorado is the states leading affordable housing advocacy organization and hosts numerous professional networking and education events throughout the year, including the annual Housing Now! Conference and Expo.

The Design by Community Webinar will explore the Design Charrette / Workshop model that has emerged from the success, experiences and lessons learned during last year's Conference based Design Charrettes. Elicia participated in last years event as a Team Leader for one of the three projects selected and has spent the year following the event working with the Charrette Committee to plan, organize and make this year's conference charrettes even better and expand the program to offer both Conference based and On-Site Charrettes to the affordable housing community in 2012!

WEBINARe
New Date: Tuesday, August 23 Webinar
Design by Community: Laying the Groundwork for Innovative Housing Solutions
About the program:
Learn about the process and benefits of the Design Charrette concept and how it has already begun to drive home some of the most innovative, sustainable and exciting affordable housing projects across Colorado through the creative collaboration of a diverse community of stakeholder and professional involvement.
2-3pm Mountain Time
Presenters:
Nancy Engelken, Housing Colorado
Joe Rowan, Funding Partners
Chuck Perry, Perry Rose
Don Hartman, Grand Junction Housing Authority
Elicia Ratajczyk, EVstudio
Online event.
Free for Housing Colorado Members.
Check your membership status here.
RSVP here.

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/140587970

Kirsten Vermulen
Director of Education/Membership Programs
Housing Colorado!
225 East 16th Avenue, Ste #575 Denver, CO 80203
303.863.0125 Direct / 303.589.5403 Cell
303.863.0127 FAX
www.housingcolorado.org

Englewood Senior Affordable Housing

Sean O'Hara — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 06:46:41 +0000

The Englewood Senior Affordable Housing Project is by Odell Architects, PC. It was the last project that I was designing when I left OA to start EVstudio. We drove by today and Steph took this picture.

Evidently it took a while to get tax credit funding and the construction was delayed. Looks like they're finally getting close. The project is at the corner of Pennsylvania and Hampden in Englewood, Colorado. I'll post an updated photograph when its complete.

EVstudio is currently making a push for more affordable housing work where we can use our talents to continue to produce high quality buildings like this one at a reasonable price.

EVstudio’s Playhouse in the Littleton Independent

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 05:42:54 +0000

The Littleton Independent newspaper has an article on the Playhouse that we designed and Catamount built for Rocky Mountain Communities.

Playhouse Project progress photos

Bill Foster — Tue, 31 May 2011 04:15:31 +0000

Catamount Constructors has been working overtime with EV Studio to put together the playhouse over the past couple of weeks and we wanted to give everyone an update on the progress photos and the final product. They have done a great job pulling everything together and we can't thank them enough but wanted to give a special thanks to Scott Boal our PM from Catamount for all the extra work he has put in to make the project happen.

There has been a change with the schedule for the Auction so please contact Rocky Mountain Communities for more details.

Blue Spruce Habitat for Humanity Hard Hats & High Heels Gala 2011

Beth Concha — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 06:01:36 +0000

Blue Spruce Habitat for Humanity will be hosting the 4th Annual Hard Hats and High Heels Gala on Saturday, June 11th. This ‘Zero Waste’ event will be held at a sustainably remodeled home in Soda Creek, Evergreen. All consumables at the event will be recyclable, compostable or reusable. Proceeds from the event will help to build a home this summer for a local family in need. The Gala will feature appetizers from local restaurants, silent auction, live paddle auction, door prizes, wine pull, complimentary photos and live music.

Visit the Botanic Gardens to See the EVstudio/Catamount Playhouse

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 06:02:39 +0000

The playhouse that EVstudio designed and Catamount Constructors constructed for Rocky Mountain Communities is installed at the Denver Botanic Gardens this weekend. Visit the exhibit and let us know what your children think.