Gardner Architects LLC

canal house

The Intracoastal Waterway runs along the east coast of the United States, connecting the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and comprising many kinds of waterways.  This project sits on one of those waterways – the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal – in a coastal maritime forest with sandy dunes, and facing grassy marshes and perennial wetlands. 

The design agenda called for a sensitive response to climate and site. The house is sited to maximize views to the canal and wetlands, while providing a variety of protected and shaded exterior spaces. The form of the house is split by a glazed entry foyer, offering views along a continuous boardwalk from the streetside through the foyer to the canal and marsh.   

Creating a shaded place, saving all the trees on site, capturing yet sheltering from sun and breeze, maximizing views, creating habitat – these are some of the project’s sustainable strategies employed to decrease energy demand and enhance building-site synergies.  The project focuses on passive and active sustainable strategies in order to decrease energy demands and burden on the local utilities. By creating a strategically shaded, highly insulated building envelope, employing a geothermal system and an energy recovery ventilator, energy costs are minimized. Carefully positioned operable windows and skylights, including in the open, gabled stairway, allow for natural ventilation and take advantage of the stack effect.  The strategic location of shading devices – exterior solar shades and a trellis – rounds out the suite of passive approaches.  

The home is a home for the beach, not a suburban home transplanted to the beach.  The design recalls the traditions of the cabins that used to comprise this community.  The heart of the home is where the towels are! Spaces for circulation, gathering, and chance encounters of the extended family and friends who gather and hang about the inside and outsides spaces.   The kitchen bridges the interior and exterior, linking a porch with the living and dining areas.   Materials are matter of fact, rough-hewn, utilitarian.  A home for the grill, kayaks, laundry, outdoor showers, and beach storage were as important as spaces for sleeping, eating, and gathering.


treehouse

Residential building fabric is all too often razed in order to create new residential structures that maximize the zoning envelope, to the detriment of the neighborhood fabric and scale. 

By contrast the design approach for this project integrates analysis of typical characteristics of construction vis-a-vis the era of construction, building-site relationships, and sustainable strategies in order to join competing interests, save the building and preserve its role in the community. 

This house, built in the 1960s, faces south on a wooded lot in Bethesda, Mary- land. The house had limited and lifeless connections to its site, and a dearth of habitable spaces that adjoined the landscape.  
With excessive energy consumption, poor construction characteristic of its era compounded by considerable deterioration as the baseline condition in which we found the home, the house then suffered a major blow--burst pipes rendered the house uninhabitable. This last event prompted the owners to either raze or resuscitate their home. 

We implemented passive approaches for daylight and ventilation, a new vapor-managed building envelope, a state-of-the art insulation strategy, and updated high-efficiency mechanical systems.  
We stewarded the development of a masterplan that manages stormwater, creates habitat for indigenous species, and selectively embraces trees thereby preserving the quality of the community. Our strategy saved the existing building, preserve the site and the existing trees contributed to the preservation of the neighborhood history. 

The renovated home includes 25% increased fenestration with glazing type and area tuned towards exposure, and a new building envelope achieving a 35% improvement over the new International Green Construction Code code baseline. 

Bringing in daylight and natural cross ventilation, the new design maximizes the benefits of available sun in winter and abundant shade in summer provided by the wooded context while retaining the tie between house and site that inspired the original design. 

treehouse shed

Treehouse Shed is part of a masterplan that manages stormwater, creates habitat for indigenous species, and selectively embraces trees thereby preserving the quality of the community. Our strategy saved the existing building, preserve the site and the existing trees contributed to the preservation of the neighborhood history.

The Shed itself augments the existing building. Built without a garage, and without an amenity such as a walk-out basement, the house lacked the means for practical storage of maintenance equipment and other items. The homeowner desired a freestanding shed that would accommodate equipment such as garden hoses, tools, a wheelbarrow, and bicycles. The zoning restrictions on the site were strict; combined with the topography the Shed would have to be placed in what seemed like the front yard.

We designed the Shed to complement the house and shape an entry space. Combined with landscaping and terraced steps, the Shed is a welcoming pavilion in the landscape.



fifties split

This 50’s era split level on a small lot needed expanding for the owners’ pattern of living and improved spatial connections internally and to the site. The owners sought to update the house to a more modern state while preserving memories of its original character.  They hoped to connect the indoors to the out-of-doors, create spacious, flexible spaces for living and dining with views between spaces, and to make the kitchen the heart of the home. Describing themselves as “accidentally sustainable,” they wanted to pair their design goals with environmentally sound choices.

The first floor spaces were expanded and joined so that dining and gathering can occur “anywhere and everywhere.”  The kitchen became the nexus of all activity, joining the living and dining spaces on the first floor to the study/ loggia and entry hall on the half-level below.  The new living space is tall and spacious with terrace doors, windows, skylights and a light shelf on the south wall, welcoming in abundant cross ventilation and natural light.  The L-shaped addition embraces a new cypress deck that floats across a grass terrace to a stone wall and rock garden, creating a unifying transition to the outdoors. This main level addition and the second floor addition, perched as a treehouse, embrace the backyard and capture the traversing daylight.

Sustainably-minded smart envelope design, passive solar heating, natural ventilation, daylighting, radiant floor heat, high insulation values, water-saving fixtures, and low VOC/formaldehyde-free materials complete the balanced design.

bay house

Developed by Gardner Mohr Architects LLC, this project, near Annapolis, Maryland, began with an unremarkable 1980s brick rambler on a spectacular site overlooking the Chesapeake Bay.  The clients had two goals: to create views of the Bay from as many rooms as possible, and to build the most “green” house the budget would bear.   The project has achieved LEED Gold certification. 
		
Dramatic views from every room except the foyer and secondary baths were achieved with an open floor plan, large windows and a 2-story living room over which loft rooms have a view the Bay.  
		
The owner’s sustainability goals were met by using passive as well as active strategies. Passive strategies include ventilation, daylighting and shading controls.  Water conservation and harvesting are achieved through low-flow fixture selection, collection and reuse of rainwater, the infiltration of 100% of the storm water on site, and the construction of a “living shoreline” for breeding of aquatic life.  Materials were chosen for a minimal impact on the environment. 
	
Geothermal heat pumps provide cooling, radiant floor heating and domestic hot water.  A high-performance building envelope consists of an R-55 roof with a white membrane, R-36 vented rain screen walls and triple low-e coated window glass.  Energy Star appliances and lighting further help to reduce energy consumption, and a photovoltaic solar power plant provides electricity which can be consumed on site or “sold” back to the grid.    

The Custom Residential Architects Network (CRAN) Knowledge Community develops knowledge and information to benefit architects who are engaged in, or who are interested in learning more about, custom residential practice. CRAN presents information and facilitates the exchange of knowledge and expertise to promote the professional development of its members via discussion forums, national symposia and conventions, publications, and local activities. Further information about CRAN, its leadership, subcommittees, local chapters, symposiums, newsletters, and emerging professionals can be found here http://network.aia.org/cran/Home/

AIA Custom Residential Architects Network

Sharing your passion for creating better places to live, work, and play. Based in Washington, D.C., the AIA has been the leading professional membership association for licensed architects, emerging professionals, and allied partners since 1857. We carry out our goals through advocacy, information, and community. Each year the AIA * Sponsors hundreds of continuing education experiences to help architects maintain their licensure * Sets the industry standard in contract documents with more than 100 forms and contracts used in the design and construction industry * Provides countless Web-based resources for emerging architecture professionals. Conducts market research and provides analysis of the economic factors that affect the business of architecture * Hosts the annual AIA National Convention and Design Exposition * Serves as an advocate of the architecture profession * Champions architects’ future by enhancing public belief in the value of design * Promotes design excellence and outstanding professional achievement through an awards program

The American Institute of Architects

AIA Potomac Valley (AIAPV) is a local chapter of the American Institute of Architects based in College Park, Maryland. Our mission is making a better environment through leadership in architecture. We empower members to advance their roles in service to society; act as a collective voice to help cultivate the future of the architectural profession; foster innovation & sustainability in design; are a knowledge resource to members and the public, raising awareness of the value of the architecture profession.

AIA Potomac Valley

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Project Highlight Video

I’ve always dreamed of having a clean, modernist home, and I’m happy to say that Alice and her team at Atelier Cohen led the way to making that dream a reality! I couldn’t be more happy with the project, my house looks like it could be featured in a Kinfolk magazine. I expressed my wishes of having a clean, natural interior aesthetic and they truly delivered – the natural light in my newly designed home is to die for. They also helped me turn my dated, drab living room into a spacious and cozy space in which I can’t wait to host a party. I couldn’t recommend Alice more, if you’re looking for easy collaboration and top-notch design, you have to reach out to them!

I’ve worked with Alice on a few renovation projects and am still floored by her dedication to design and space planning. Never have I experienced a hiccup or missed communication with Atelier Cohen, and home projects tend to create those sorts of problems! They are professional, approachable, and innovative in a way that anyone with any level of home renovating or staging experience will feel like they are in good hands.

Alice’s eye, advice, and service is extremely rare in this business. If you get the chance to work with them, don’t think twice about it!

I had the pleasure of working with Alice on redecorating my childhood home that hadn’t been touched up since I was a teen in the 80’s. I knew it needed a huge refresh aesthetically, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I had a consultation with Alice about my hazy ideas and she was able to understand my tastes and needs after just one chat! The whole design process was so streamlined and thorough that my fears of things going awry totally vanished after the first few meetings. She walked me through every step of the process, from sharing sketches and moodboards to purchasing the final pieces of furniture and decoration. Working with Alice at Atelier Cohen has got to be my greatest investment, I highly recommend their services.

I’ve always dreamed of having a clean, modern farmhouse kitchen, and I’m happy to say that Maison Kitchen and Bath led the way to making that dream a reality! I couldn’t be more happy with the project, our kitchen looks like it could be the envy of Pinterest. I expressed my wishes of having a light, airy feel with natural but polished finishes, and they truly delivered – the kitchen in my home is to die for. They also helped me turn my claustrophobic galley kitchen into a beautiful open-space plan that makes me actually want to cook and entertain in the kitchen. I couldn’t recommend Maison K&B more, if you’re looking for easy collaboration and top-notch design, you have to reach out to them!

I’ve worked with Maison Kitchen and Bath on a few renovation projects and am still floored by their dedication to design and construction. Never have I experienced a hiccup or missed communication with them, and home projects tend to create those sorts of problems! They are professional, approachable, and innovative in a way that anyone with any level of home renovating experience will feel like they are in good hands.

Their advice and service through all stages of any project large or small is extremely rare in this business. If you get the chance to work with them, don’t think twice about it!

I had the pleasure of working with Maison Kitchen and Bath on renovating my childhood home that hadn’t been touched up since it was built in the 50’s. I’m quite environmentally minded, so I knew the appliances and electrical elements needed an update. I also knew it needed a bit of a refresh aesthetically, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I had a consultation with them about my hazy ideas and they were able to understand my tastes and needs after just one chat! The whole renovation process was so streamlined and thorough that my fears of things going awry totally vanished after the first few weeks. Working with Maison Kitchen and Bath has got to be my greatest investment, I highly recommend their services.

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I’ve always dreamed of having a clean, modernist home, and I’m happy to say that Haus Design + Build led the way to making that dream a reality! I couldn’t be more happy with the project, my house looks like it could be featured on Architecture Digest. I expressed my wishes of having high ceilings and large windows, and they truly delivered – the natural light in my new home is to die for. They also helped me turn my claustrophobic galley kitchen into a beautiful open-space plan that makes me actually want to cook and entertain in the kitchen. I couldn’t recommend Haus DB more, if you’re looking for easy collaboration and top-notch design, you have to reach out to them!

I’ve worked with Haus Design and Build on a few renovation projects and am still floored by their dedication to design and construction. Never have I experienced a hiccup or missed communication with them, and home projects tend to create those sorts of problems! They are professional, approachable, and innovative in a way that anyone with any level of home renovating experience will feel like they are in good hands.

Their advice and service through all stages of any project large or small is extremely rare in this business. If you get the chance to work with them, don’t think twice about it!

I had the pleasure of working with Haus Design + Build on renovating my childhood home that hadn’t been touched up since it was built in the 50’s. I’m quite environmentally minded, so I knew the appliances and electrical elements needed an update. I also knew it needed a bit of a refresh aesthetically, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I had a consultation with them about my hazy ideas and they were able to understand my tastes and needs after just one chat! The whole construction process was so streamlined and thorough that my fears of things going awry totally vanished after the first few weeks. Working with Haus DB has got to be my greatest investment, I highly recommend their services.

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Gardner Architects LLC

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