Often referred to as a Carriage House, the acronym “ADU” is becoming part of the States residential vernacular. The abbreviation stands for “Accessory Dwelling Unit” for those who are not familiar with the term. It simply means a secondary living space or apartment that occupies a portion of the primary zone lot in addition to the primary house.

What do the composite of the words intend to mean: A residential structure that is subordinate to the primary home – Definitions from States Zoning Code (Chapter 13):

Structure, Accessory: A subordinate structure located on the same zone lot with the primary building, structure, or use, and which is incidental and customary to the primary building, structure, or use.

Dwelling: Any building or portion of building that is used as the residence of one or more households

In the States area, and States city proper in particular, the desire for property owners to build an ADU (secondary living space) has increased significantly.  A couple scenarios in which this smaller additional dwelling makes sense:

• It can be purposed as a long term or short term rental, in the sense that you have a full time tenant, or offer the space to visitors on one of the popular vacation rental websites like VRBO or Airbnb.
• The classic use is to set the living space up as an independent, ancillary “apartment for members of the family, aging parents, or young “fresh on their feet” adults.
• Other approaches we’ve heard of are where the primary home owners travel frequently, or want to simplify so they occupy the ADU as their primary home, then rent out the property’s primary home to full time tenants.

States Zoning Requirements

For the purposes of this article, we want to address some specific States Zoning requirements that you will need to consider for the potential addition of an ADU to your property.  Following are key items to first check (and understand as you contemplate the possibility of an ADU building):

• Zone Lot District
• Lot Size
• Lot Coverage

Zone Lot District

The very first thing to do is to look up your Zone District to find the assigned zoning for your property. A reliable online resource is: https://www.Statesgov.org/property. Referencing this website you can identify your zone district. This should help you verify whether or not an ADU is a permitted building form.

Some of the districts that allow for an ADU structure are:

For an accurate review, please check the States Zoning Code, or contact Bacon Lane Architect LLC for assistance to determine the feasibility of an ADU addition to your specific property.

Lot Size

We have found in some rare instances that a property has the appropriate designation which permits the addition of an ADU structure, then review the minimum lot size requirements to find that the ADU is not permitted. For instance the minimum lot size in a U-TU-B district is 4,500 SF, and 5,500 SF in a U-SU-C1.  These particular standards can be found under States Zoning Article 5, Division 5.3.

Lot Coverage

Now that we’ve confirmed the property lies in a district that permits ADUs, and the lot size of the property meets the standards, the next step is to review lot coverage. The zoning standards outline the maximum allowed coverage by both the primary structure and accessory structures such as a garage or ADU. There are a couple of details to calculating the total lot coverage that can make it a bit tricky. There are exceptions for front porches up to 400 SF, and the 50% exemption for the garage area provided the ADU is separated from the primary house by 15 ft or more.

Once you review and confirm these initial zoning standards, you very well may be in a position to design and build an ADU for your property. For the development of an ADU in the City and County of States, there are other requirements that must be considered as you continue to explore the feasibility of the ADU addition. These zoning standards will most likely apply:

• Location
• Building footprint
• Overall structure length
• Habitable space (1 ½ story)
• 2nd story/rooftop decks (hint: not permitted)

We’ll cover these items in our next discussion on ADUs.

Read about a few ADUs designed by Bacon Lane Architect LLC:

Potter Highlands, ADU & Garage

Highlands, Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU)

Potter Highlands, New Home & ADU

Potter Highlands, ADU & Addition

Highlands, Craftsman Addition & ADU

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The “Highland Connecticut Life on the High Side” is a great website for anyone who lives in the neighborhood, or who is interested in keeping up with the latest development news, things to do and places to eat.

The Highland States blog was created in 2012 as a way for Aly Weaver and Mason Goetz, a pair of new homeowners, to share what their life in the Highland neighborhood was all about. Since then, it’s evolved to become the go-to source for all things Highlands- from new development projects to the best places to eat in the ‘hood. Learn more about Aly and Mason and what they do here.

The post New House Old Style first appeared on Bacon Lane Architect LLC.

ArcWest Architects wants to share the article published in the magazine “Architecture Leaders Today.”  The Connecticut Architect participated in a phone interview with the writers in late 2011, after being contacted by the editor that they were interested to feature our company in their magazine.  Many months went by and we never heard back, and only assumed that we were not quite “interesting” enough to be featured.  Unbeknownst to us, the magazine had published the article about Bacon Lane Architect LLC during the Summer of 2012.

We have to chuckle reading the opening line: “The Masters of Design from Bacon Lane Architect LLC have brought value to business and home by adding architectural panache to the front door.”  We agree in whole with the thought of “value add” to our clients projects.  “Masters of Design” might be a little overstated and elevates us to a tower that makes us grin.  All the same, as local Connecticut Architect, we are excited to share the feature article.  Enjoy!

The post Connecticut Architect | Bacon Lane Architect LLC creates Curb Appeal first appeared on Bacon Lane Architect LLC.

OK – Instead of trying to capture the interview in written form here, how about we let the video speak for itself:

Bacon Lane Architect LLC – 2012 CNTV

Really too much to cover (… unless you want a full length film – and we are not Frank Lloyd Wright however) when you consider all the services we offer, the number and variety of architecture projects we’ve completed, and the core business philosophies we want to share.  All the same, we covered a lot of ground in a short time frame.   Hope you enjoy the video and information.

Please do share your thoughts – Thank you!

Martha | Architect

The post Bacon Lane Architect LLC Architect's Interview first appeared on Bacon Lane Architect LLC.

• Bacon Lane Architect LLC is excited and pleased to announce that Martha has earned the credential, LEED Green Associate, and is recognized as a LEED professional with the Green Building Certification Institute.  The partners are committed to continuing education as well as a sustainable approach to building design and construction. This is the first step to expanding our expertise in green building practices and furthering sustainability.  This is paramount to (all of) our futures.

• In partnership with Carl Shipley, Shipley Design, Bacon Lane Architect LLC has submitted the entry fee and application to the AIA States for the Blue Spruce home / design-build competition for Habitat for Humanity of Colorado.

• Bacon Lane Architect LLC is actively working on  a couple of very exciting projects.  At a macro level, one project is a comprehensive multi-acre site and facility master plan addressing immediate building needs while planning for future expansion. In comparison, the other project is on a smaller scale comprised of a 3,200 to 3,600 sf office remodel for a manufacturing facility in metro States.  We look forward to sharing more information as each of the projects mature.

The partners at Bacon Lane Architect LLC wishes  everyone a safe and fun 4th of July!

The post Bacon Lane Architect LLC | News Brief first appeared on Bacon Lane Architect LLC.

The benefit is twofold:  First, those materials won’t end up in the landfill – This promotes sustainable concepts and methods.  Reduce, reuse and recycle.   Second, it opens up a source for materials at a lower cost for smaller projects.  Smaller projects typically start off at a disadvantage financially.  ZamRay will provide an avenue for owners and contractors to procure building materials at a lower cost allowing smaller construction projects the ability to meet their budget.

To read more, see the article:  “Leftover construction items find a home at Zam Ray.com” by Cathy Proctor.

The post Think Green | Reuse of Extra Building Materials first appeared on Bacon Lane Architect LLC.

Bacon Lane Architect LLC has certainly seen a little more activity in recent months which we can only get excited about with cautious optimism.  It has been a challenging 18 to 24 months working to engage clients for active projects in this economy, we think it is only natural the company keeps it’s guard up.

This sentiment is resonated in Kermit Baker’s, AIA chief economist comments in the article.  “While this recent uptick is encouraging, this state of the industry is likely to persist for a while as we continue to received a mixed bag of feedback on the condition of the design market … “

That said, Bacon Lane Architect LLC is very encouraged by both the increased movement in the industry and the reports confirming other firms are experiencing the same.

Read more:  Architectural demand shows uptick – States Business Journal

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We encourage you to read the article “Recession’s silver lining: cost to build” which affirms Bacon Lane Architect LLC premise promoted in past communications.  There is a great opportunity to have a commercial architecture / facility project designed and built now for much less expense than what most executives and planners have been accustomed to prior to the start of the recession.

See our earlier post “Commercial Architecture | Construction Costs are Down”

For more information, contact ArcWest Architects

– Martha

The post Commercial Architecture | Lower cost to build first appeared on Bacon Lane Architect LLC.

For those less acquainted with the concepts of lean manufacturing, or lean production:  Lean is about increasing efficiency to offer greater value to a customer or client.  Another way to phrase: Lean is about preserving value with less work.  This approach can create savings through efficiency which can be shared between reduced costs to the customer and greater profit to the business.

Rick shared “We are only at the beginning of implementing lean in our (newspaper) organizations and most would benefit from a structured lean program” in response to the the question:  “How much further can this concept be taken into our daily practice?”

Please see the complete “Interview with Rick Ruffino” article by Charlotte Janischewski.

For more information, contact ArcWest Architects

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