Single Family Homes
Monteith Park
Huntersville, North Carolina

Working on behalf of a Neighborhood Design Review Board, CDS was involved in the mark-up and comment of proposed new homes in an existing neighborhood. A new production builder was coming into an existing neighborhood and there was much concern (rightfully so) that the design quality would not be in keeping with the adjacent homes.

CDS performed the following “review” of the home designs, to evaluate them in terms of “authentic” traditional principles and details. In addition to highlighting issues/concerns in the proposed designs, CDS produced “Re-skin” alternate elevations that essentially demonstrated the implementation of the principles and comments provided. This served to illustrate the impact these principles and design considerations can have on the overall aesthetic quality of the designs.

It is worth noting that a number of the recommendations actually result in a net savings for the builder, while some are simply re-configurations of existing elements, which should have no cost impact. Good design and authentic traditional detailing doesn’t have to cost more, but good design unfortunately isn’t as common as it used to be...