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EVstudio joins the Apartment Association of Metro Denver (AAMD)

Rich Muller — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 21:00:52 +0000

With the turn of the new year EVstudio has embarked on a new emphasis in the multi-family residential market. Seen as a growing field and coupled with a recent up-tick in architectural billings, multi-family is poised to represent a large portion of the construction market here in the Front Range.

EVstudio recently inked a major multi-family commission in Colorado Springs. With 288 units on roughly 6 acres the development is targeting the Colorado College and University of Colorado at Colorado Springs populations. We also have two 100 plus unit projects in Central Texas slated for the spring.

Heading the multi-family push is Rich Muller who comes to EVstudio from Houston, Texas where he had worked in the multi-family arena for several years and has over 3,000 designed units to his credit. His specialty is high-density, urban developments as well as suburban garden-style apartments.

EVstudio recently joined the Apartment Association of Metro Denver and is looking forward to becoming an active member in the Association, offering classes and lending an architect’s perspective to the industry.

If you are planning on a multi-family development over the next year, please feel free to contact EVstudio to discuss entitlements, density and overall strategy.

Originally posted 2012-01-19 13:59:26.

De Bruin Virtual Tour

evstudio — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 21:00:24 +0000

There is a Virtual Tour of the De Bruin Duplex on Homestore.com.

This half of the duplex is currently for sale through EV Real Estate.

Originally posted 2008-10-06 16:17:58.

Elevated Post Tensioned Slab for Townhomes in Boulder, CO

Jim Houlette — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:40:21 +0000

EVstudio recently observed the reinforcement and tendons for an elevated post tensioned slab that will support three wood frame townhomes at 303 Canyon Blvd in Boulder. The project is at a great location and we really look forward to seeing this one completed. We worked with C and L Development, the post tension contractor, to provide the client a total package for the PT design and construction.

For this project we provided engineering services just for the elevated post tensioned slab. We're happy to help with just the PT design, but we really enjoy designing the entire structure. EVstudio provides full structural engineering services to design any type of structure our clients may want. From small home additions to large commercial projects you can count on us.

A view of the two span slab and the concrete beam using tendons to provide additional strength.

One of my favorite shots from inside the beam.

Slab profile where you can see the draping of the tendons. By draping the tendons you maximize the strength of the post tension slab.

Overall shot that also shows the roughly 30" step in the floor elevation. This is basically two separate slabs with a concrete wall between them. C and L did a great job on the forms and will be able to pour the two slabs and wall monolithically giving the client a better looking slab.

Post Tensioned Slab Foundation for Apartments in Delta, Colorado

Jim Houlette — Sun, 22 May 2011 21:47:31 +0000

EVstudio provided structural engineering services for the post tensioned slab-on-grade foundation for a project under construction in Delta, Colorado. The project is being built by Shaw Construction with RMS Concrete Inc providing the contractor services of the concrete placement.

The project is called Alta Vista de La Montana and consists of two multi-unit residential apartment buildings.

Below are some great pictures provided by Shaw's project engineers showing the major steps of constructing a post tension foundation.

Step 1: Trench the ribs and set plumbing that is below the slab elevation

Step 2: Pour the ribs (if doing a two pour placement) and stab in rebar to tie the ribs to the slab

Step 3: Vapor Barrier, final plumbing, tendons, and reinforcement of the slab

Step 4: Slab placement, a half stress (roughly 24hrs), then full stress of the tendons within 7 days

Step 5: Construction can begin within just a couple days of the slab placement

Cost per Square Foot for Construction for 8 to 24 Story Apartment Buildings

Dean Dalvit — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 06:42:57 +0000

EVstudio has a large body of collective experience with Multifamily and Apartment projects and we keep a very close eye on industry trends for construction cost as they are directly relevant to the our projects and clients who need to be ever vigilant with their cost control and project budgeting. This post focuses on a specific project type: Apartment buildings between 8 and 24 stories. The number of stories impacts a project considerably as there is an economy of scale involved with spreading out infrastructure cost and the cost of required internal systems (like elevators and structured parking) across the gross square footage of the building.

The source for this data is RSMeans, the industry leader in construction cost estimating.

Construction Cost per Square Foot for 8 to 24 Story Apartment building

As we have seen for nearly all project types in previous research, New York tops the chart as the highest cost per square foot for this project type while cities in the south are among the lowest cost per square foot. The median cost per square foot falls around $220 per square foot.

Apartment buildings are well known to have a huge spectrum of amenities and services from high end spas, theaters, shops and restaurants within a larger mixed use program, while affordable housing apartments would generally keep to a simpler program. Regardless of the kind of apartment or multifamily project you are considering, EVstudio can help to inform your initial design concepts while keeping in mind your project budget. Then ultimately providing you with award winning architectural and engineering design for the realization of your project.

Sound Transmission Class (STC) and Impact Insulation Class (IIC) Between Dwelling Units

Sean O'Hara — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:39:50 +0000

In multifamily building construction you need to insulate the dwelling units for sound. When using the International Building Code all common interior walls, partitions and floor/ceiling assemblies between adjacent units and between units and hallways, stairs and service areas need to be insulated. There are two types of sound that need to be addressed, the first is sound transmitted through the air and the second is sound transmitted through the building structure.

Sound Transmission Class (STC) is a rating of how well a building partition attenuates airborne sound. The STC number is roughly the reduction in decibels that a partition creates in the 125 Hz to 4,000 Hz range. Walls and floor/ceiling assemblies need to be insulated for airborne sound to achieve a STC of 50 or more. Typically you can find the sound rating for assemblies in the same location that you found the fire rating for the assembly. You can also contact manufacturers for more information on assemblies that use their products. If you choose to create your own assembly and have it tested, it must have a minimum STC of 45 after it is tested. Where you have openings and penetrations in the assembly they must be adequately insulated to maintain the STC with the only exception being entry doors.

Impact Insulation Class (IIC) is a rating of how well a floor/ceiling assembly attenuates structure borne sound. The IIC number is roughly the reduction in decibels that a partition creates in the 100 Hz to 3,150 Hz range when tapped by the testing machine. The easiest way to achieve the required IIC rating of 50 is to use carpet and underlayment as your flooring which can give you 20+ points. There are also a number of underlayment options for harder surfaces. You can also have the assembly field tested if you don't have an official rating and again you need to achieve a 45.

Now on the subject of field testing vs using an established rating, it is my opinion that field testing should only be chosen if the particular assembly is necessary to the building design or will create serious savings. Otherwise it isn't worth the brain damage and testing costs.

Originally posted 2008-11-01 16:23:02.

Accessory Occupancies in the International Building Code

Sean O'Hara — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 07:02:13 +0000

The International Building Code provides several routes for designing buildings with more than one occupancy. Building owners who don't want to separate occupancies with fire separations have to employ one of these. For buildings with a large primary occupancy and a small accessory occupancy, the answer may be section 508.2 - Accessory Occupancies.

An accessory occupancy can take up no more than 10 percent of the building area on the story where it is located and can't exceed the Table 503 values. Note this is area per story and not as a percentage of the total building.

The area of the accessory occupancy must meet the requirements of that occupancy.

No separation is required between accessory occupancies that meet these criteria and the primary occupancy with a few exceptions:

Group H-2, H-3, H-4, and H-5 occupancies must be separated from other occupancies. Group I-1, R-1, R-2 and R-3 dwelling and sleeping units must be separated from each other and contiguous accessory occupancies. Incidental use areas must still be separated.

Construction Cost per Square Foot for Hotels, Motels and Apartments

Dean Dalvit — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 06:01:25 +0000

Hospitality and multifamily design have many common factors and we have worked on many projects in both sectors. This post is specifically focused on the construction Cost per Square Foot for Hotels, Motels and Apartment Buildings across several regions in the United States.

So, how much does it cost to build a hotel, motel or apartment building by square foot? While this will depend heavily on the design of the building, and its location, there is some guidance based on data collected nationally and analyzed by RSMeans, the industry leader in construction cost estimating and analysis. Local economy is a very important factor in construction cost as well as the type of construction you intend to build. Note, that not all types of construction cost the same per square foot, and even more importantly, the cost of construction per square foot varies significantly with location.

Below are three different types of hospitality and multifamily construction and the varying cost per square foot to expect for each in different regions. All graph images are courtesy of RSMeans Construction Cost Data. Data source: Reed Construction Data – RSMeans/Charts: Reed Construction Data – CanaData

Construction Cost per Square Foot of 2-3 Story Motel

As you can see from the range of cost per square foot, location alone can represent as much as 70% of the cost driver for a 2-3 Story Motel. The median for this type of construction is between $170 and $180 per square foot. Not surprisingly, New York tops the charts for most expensive city to build in at over $234 per square foot. Winston-Salem consistently ranks as the most inexpensive city to build in at $134 per square foot for motels.

Construction Cost per Square Foot for 4-7 Story Hotel

Building vertical always provides an economy of scale for larger structures, and that is noted with taller hotel construction. As these costs are spread out over greater square footage, we see a median cost in the mid $160 range with $217 on the high end and $124 on the low end.

Construction Cost per Square Foot 4-7 Story Apartment Building

At the lowest end of the cost spectrum is the 4-7 story apartment building. Similar to the Hotels, taking advantage of the vertical construction, apartment buildings also are not required to have the variety of functions that are necessary in a hotel. While amenities will be very specific to projects, on average, apartment buildings median cost are in the low $160's per square foot with a range of $121 on the low end to $212 on the high end.

It is increasingly important to understand the cost drivers for any commercial project and how building type, construction type and location can all be huge variables that will drive your cost per square foot. These are always a part of the initial programming discussions and the Architect will play a huge role in helping to define the ranges of cost to expect for the project.

The ‘NEW’ ADA Guide book

Bill Foster — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 01:54:37 +0000

In 2004 the US Access Board developed and proposed a new set of ADA and ABA Accessibility Guidelines that would be the new standard by which compliance with the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act would be judged. The new guidebook is a big improvement and incorporates many of the improvements found in ANSI A117.1 - 2003 making it much easier to reconcile these two codes that are often both required on the same project. The only catch was that the Justice Department had to approve the guidelines.

Come 2008 the Justice Department was still taking public comment. And then in 2009 with a new administration and a new set of Justice Department leadership a re-review was ordered and according to a source within the Access Board it may be late 2010 before any further action is taken.

While long in the making, this change will have far reaching effects and is definitely one to keep your eye open for in the future. This is especially true if you are planning a building renovation involving public entryways or bathrooms which have literally hundreds of requirements to consider.

My experience in this area ranges from new build work including Multi-family projects to challenging renovations of hotels and professional sports arena projects. We at EV Studio would be happy to help you add the value of accessibility to any project big or small.

Grants Available for Green Affordable Housing

Elicia Ratajczyk — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 07:01:48 +0000

While helping a client explore the matrix of options for a potential Green Affordable Housing development, I came across two different grant sources that specifically support Green Affordable Housing efforts:

The first grant is "The Affordable Housing Initiative" offered by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) through a grant from the Home Depot Foundation and is intended to developers achieve LEED for Homes (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification of their affordable housing projects by helping to cover the costs of the certification process including registration, verification and certification costs.

The second source is the Green Communities Program through Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. and includes grant opportunities specifically for Green Affordable Housing projects including:

Charrettes Grants which provide up to $5,000 in funding "to assist housing developers with integrating green building systems in their developments and engage in a serious discussion of green design possibilities".
Planning & Construction Grants of up to $75,000 to cover the increases in planning & construction expenses that may be attributable to upgrading the design and performance of the project for sustainability.
Sustainability Training Grants of up to $5,000 for affordable housing developers to cover the costs of designing and implementing a comprehensive training curriculum and operations & maintenance manual supporting the long-term operations and maintenance of the properties after construction is complete.

Green Communities offers these grants and provide a range of loan products and Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Equity assistance to affordable housing projects that adhere to the Green Communities Criteria, which is similar to the LEED for Homes Certification Criteria.

Bringing well thought out green design to affordable housing projects adds another level of true sustainability to the project and to the community in which it is built by increasing the efficiency of the project and reducing the long-term operations and maintenance costs of the building. Projects may apply for and qualify for any combination of these special funding opportunities available specifically for green development. They can be added to the Pro Forma along with the other affordable housing funding opportunities that may be available.