* Please Note: Live/Work has moved! We’re now located at Portland Built. Please click here to see what it’s all about!* I found a great article in the magazine “Small Homes” (a publication of Fine Homebuilding). In the article, “A Low Budget, High Impact House,” Designer Chris Stebbins talks about the advantage of building with [...]
Design Within Reach (a somewhat ironic name if you’ve ever shopped there) put together a great contest on small apartment design. Some highlights below: Click the photo to see the video of the space in use. It’s great!
I really like the idea of translucent walls and doorways. What a great way to capitalize on natural light! Here’s some examples form the site www.modernus.com
As part of the land use review process, the applicant must demonstrate that their zoning adjustment will meet or exceed the purpose of the zone (here’s the criteria: Adjustment Approval Criteria (PDF)) As part of this process, I am citing other properties in the neighborhood that either have a similar amount of building-to-land ratio or [...]
There are several steps to getting the city to accept designs that fall outside the zoning code. These steps are: Review your basic idea with a city planner (free) Determine what adjustments will be needed (free) Work with a designer or architect to create a site plane, elevation drawings, utility plans, and landscape plans (cost [...]
Portland’s BDS (Bureau of Development Services) has a fantastic website full of helpful information. Here are a few online resources: Overview of ADUs. Overview of the development process. Information on adjustments. One of the challenges to building an ADU is that there may be zoning limitations that prohibit the size, shape or placement of your [...]
Let’s face it – most houses have garages and most garages are UGLY. Here’s a solution to the garage door that’s both interesting and highly functional. What I especially like about these glass-panel doors is the ability to let in natural light. Here’s some other examples of glass door installations.
A list of houses comparable to 5936 NE Mason (without the addition of an ADU) 4344 NE 64th Ave, Portland, OR 97218 SOLD: 12/08/2006 – $365,000 Year Built: 1967 Ranch Size: 926 Sq Ft 2 Bedroom, 1 bath Lot size: 4000 sq feet 3304 NE 75th Ave, Portland, OR 97213 SOLD: 01/02/2007 – $291,000 Year [...]
Met with a city planner today, after some suggestions from local cohousing developer Eli Spevak. Visiting the city planning building can be a daunting experience. It’s a very modern building and lobby, and everyone who comes in seems to know what they’re doing (except for me, of course). Fortunately, Eli gave me some good suggestions [...]