EVstudio Architecture, Engineering and Planning

With the kids out of school due to the COVID-19 virus, it presented a unique opportunity to visit one of our past projects and share some new photos. In 2008, the Montclair International School moved from their small school in the Montclair neighborhood to the Lowry neighborhood. For a while, they were the Denver Montclair International School and that eventually became the International School…

Ground Floor and the Type B Multistory Unit

Years ago when we started this blog, I had no idea how often we’d hear from other architects that they had read something useful on it. A couple of weeks ago, I even received an email from a code reviewer that I know. While I still have to wrestle with her on our other projects, this time she was coming to me for advice.

This discussion happens to be about the Colorado State Statutes for…

City of Denver Affordable Housing Fee Now in Effect January 2017

Affordable housing fee in effect; New application required for building permits As of January 1, new development in Denver is subject to a fee ranging from $0.40 to $1.70/sq. ft., depending on project type. These fees will support the development and preservation of affordable housing. Every building permit applicant must submit an affordable housing fee application at log-in. (This form is not…

High Street Luxury Condominiums at the University of Denver

The High Street Domicile is all about High Design. Intended as a stand-out 29 unit highly amenitized luxury condominium project, this building was designed specifically for the upper echelon of the discriminating condo market. At roughly 84 DU/Acre, the design offers units with floor-to-ceiling glass, stunning interior finishes, interior parking and ultra-contemporary penthouse suites. With…

Ovation in Lone Tree Colorado

When the Ovation project in Lone Tree came to us, it was stuck with a Pro Forma that didn’t work. The Developer was working with a density study that was provided for them and the bottom line was not enough parking and not enough units. So they came to EVstudio. We creatively rethought the entire site, included a portion of structured parking, and worked with the 24 feet of grade drop across the…

Aria Condominiums in Saskatoon Saskatchewan

The story about Aria is not that it was EVstudio’s first international multifamily project, the first of several more to come. As exciting as that was for us, the real story behind Aria was the total revolution this project created in the booming college town of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. A 66 unit podium project with heated underground parkade, the modern design aesthetic situated among…

Liberty Hill City Administration Building – Construction

Construction started last month on the new City of Liberty Hill administration building which is being building on an infill lot located in the old downtown area of Liberty Hill. The foundation slab is complete and the CMU elevator shaft is about halfway finished. Framing and parking lot paving will be starting within the next two weeks. This design build project that is being built by Gilger…

Construction Cost Per Square Foot for Multifamily Housing Based on Construction Type

I recently was working with the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless in Denver to provide  objective third party opinion of estimated construction costs for an affordable housing project in Denver. We have had the pleasure to work on both market rate as well as affordable housing projects of a variety of sizes in the Denver/Metro area and as a result, have recent data on the costs for those…

Construction Observation Photos of CentricLoHi Project

Over the course of nearly one I have been taking pictures from the places around the job site at our CentricLoHi Project Denver, CO. I thought it would be fun to put a collection of images together to highlight the construction process from these point of views.

Ovation Construction Time Machine

Over the course of nearly three years I have been taking pictures from the same places around the job site at our Ovation multi-family project in Lone Tree, CO and with completion right around the corner I thought it would be fun to put a collection of images together to highlight the construction process from a single point of view.  Enjoy! Above: July 2, 2013 Above: September 30, 2014 Above:…

Allowable Building Height, Story and Area Tables Updated in IBC 2015

Updated versions of the International Building Code are published every 3 years.  On a new project, one of the first code restrictions to determine is the allowable building height, area, and number of stories. Since 2000, the International Building Code has shown the allowable building height, area, and stories all in one table, 503.  This one table also had to show the different factors used in…

A Foggy View of a Finished Genessee Residence

This weekend I was able to visit and photograph a house that I designed in Genessee. The house was completed in December, so it was fun to see the house after the owners had occupied it. The house is approximately 4,500 Square Feet (3,500 finished) and is situated on a very steep lot. The back side of the house, next to the garage, is mostly buried into the slope and the Master bedroom balcony is…

Genesee Residence Construction Update

Recently, I had the opportunity to visit two houses that we designed which are currently under construction. It was exciting for me to visit both of these residences since I designed the electrical layout for the first house and I designed the second in its entirety (architecture, structure, and electrical layout). For more information about the first house, “Grateful Manor” See Katelyn Wager’s…

The Collaboration of a Custom Home Feature – A Tuscan Wine Room

Custom homes require a collaboration with the homeowner, design team, general contractor and field trades. I’m lucky enough to work with some great clients, builders and tradesmen collaborating to turn design into physical reality. A custom home project is unique to every client and their visions for the features they want to experience and be a part of their home. Here we see a  feature turned…

Horizontal Vs Diagonal Decking

When beginning a deck project, you traditionally have two options when going to with decking. Horizontal or diagonal decking.  Each have their pros and cons that I am going to go through. Horizontal decking is largely the most popular choice for wood framed decks due to it typically being the easiest method to install. But there are some drawbacks.  Sway bracing must be installed to eliminate…