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Craft Design Studio, PLLC is an Architecture firm specializing in Authentic, Traditionally Rooted Architecture, in an Urban context.  Founder, Kenny Craft,  has been a passionate advocate of the New Urbanist movement, and the work of Craft Design Studio strives to align with, and advance it’s principles. 

Craft Design Studio specializes in residential architecture, from High End Residential, to Affordable Housing, from New Urban Neighborhoods to Historic Urban In-fill. Craft Design Studio can also provide architectural services for a wide range of commercial architecture, specializing in types common to New Urban Neighborhoods, such as Live Works, Multifamily Buildings, and Mixed Use Buildings.  Craft Design Studio can also provide Town Architect services, developing architectural standards, and upholding them through a rigorous yet customer sensitive review process.

Kenny Craft currently serves as the Director of Design for the South Main Neighborhood, in Buena Vista Colorado, a Mixed-use Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND), planned by Dover Kohl and Partners.  As Director of Design, Kenny oversees all aspects of design and implementation, upholding design standards through a design review process and construction observation. 

Kenny has also been a Charrette team member for mixed-use developments around the country, helping to set and establish an architectural vision for the development, rooted in the local building traditions of the region.

Core Principles and Design Methodology

Communication

Communication is crucial to a successful relationship and a successful project.  Our approach focuses on clear communication in all aspects of the process in order to achieve a design that exceeds expectations and is also an enjoyable process for the Client

Attention to Detail

Thoroughness and attention to detail are a hallmark of Craft Design Studio.  From the careful development of a design program to a proactive correspondence with the Contractor during construction, no detail is left un-scrutinized in the process.

Traditional Architecture

Tradition is merely taking from the past the things that work best.  All great places in the world are great because they respected tradition and learned from it.  Craft Design Studio has a depth of knowledge as well as an ingrained methodology of learning from the past and applying it to contemporary design problems.  Timeless principles are indelibly woven into a design and seamlessly integrate with the needs of contemporary life.

Sense of Place / Indigenous Architecture

Throughout time, architecture always responded to and reflected the characteristics of it’s place.  Buildings were built using locally available materials and built to respond to the prevailing climate of their location.  This responsive design resulted in an Indigenous Architecture that was intensely rooted in it’s place, uniquely distinguishable, and environmentally fitted to it’s climate.  Craft Design Studio is passionate about design that has a sense of place, that is indeed indigenous to it’s locale.

Urbanism

Throughout time, human settlement has placed all the necessities of life and society in a convenient walkable arrangement, an Urban arrangement.  All “great” places prior to about 1930 were inherently walkable, livable, and indeed sustainable.  Modern society has all but lost the knowledge of how to build these great places, and with the loss has ushered in severe social, health, environmental, and economic problems.  New Urbanism is a movement that has responded to this crisis, and proposed a return to the tried and true Urban principles that have always served humanity best.  Above all else, a passion and belief in the principles of urbanism guides the direction of the work of Craft Design Studio.

Sustainability

Sustainability is a core principle at Craft Design Studio.  Kenny is a LEED accredited professional and has been involved on several projects pursuing LEED certification.  Craft Design Studio comes at Sustainable Design from a perspective of Environmental Stewardship; the resources of the earth are available for us, but we should strive to minimize our negative impact upon the earth.  The most successful design occurs when innovative sustainable strategies result in a reduced impact on the earth and also result in very tangible benefits such as reduced utility expenses, improved indoor air quality and health, longevity of systems, etc.