18 inches

"It's not your job to be confused as Nigel."

In the classic 1984 “Rockumentary by Marti DeBergi” This Is Spinal Tap, 18 inches was a total disaster, albeit one with hilarious consequences.

But we’re not talking woefully inadequate Stonehenge replicas here. Because, in our case, a measurement of 18 inches is monumental… it ends up translating into an additional 300 square feet!

Matthew from Green Bottle Workshop explains:

“The addition of 18 inches to the back of the house brought us to the minimum square footage required for a new house in Bluff Park (2,500 square feet). This ‘minor’ detail hadn’t come up in any of our three prior meetings with the City of Hoover’s building officials; and, it was two full weeks after they’d received the final plans before we first learned of it. Since we’d already waited so long, we were willing to do whatever was necessary to obtain the permit that day. Being almost 300 square feet under code meant it would have been difficult to add anywhere else but the back of the house without having to return to the drawing board (had we tried to add it to the middle of the floor plan, it would have drastically affected the elevations). This is one of the great advantages to design/build. We were able to make the adjustments, and get things back on track.”

Last week, during a walkthrough at the site with Will, Liane and I were able to actually see the gained space in the closet/laundry area near the master bedroom. During our discussions with Will, he proposed the idea of a recessed shelf/headboard situation that would go above the bed, eliminating the need for a headboard and side tables. In order to do this without robbing the master bedroom of precious space, he suggested that we consider repositioning the dividing wall between the two spaces (i.e. moving it back a bit and taking space from the closet area). However, this might also mean having to adjust the window in the closet/laundry area. We asked Will if he wouldn’t mind drawing this up so we could have a better idea of how much/little the new placement would affect the design before making our decision. And he kindly obliged.

Revised west elevation: before (above) and after (below).

If you look closely at the bottom elevation, you may also notice that the vertical trim piece has been moved back slightly in order to divide the windows evenly and help preserve the rhythm established by the previous window placement.

Satisfied by the results—the reposition is barely noticeable and will, more importantly, make for a better interior space—we make the decision to move the window and the wall. Will lets us know that this will be done after the roof trusses are up… next week.

Week 5: let the frames begin

Monday, August 11. It’s drizzling, gloomy, overcast day in Bluff Park. Not the best of weather for framing, but the framers get to it…

The amazing Lauren and Rachel Burns… and balloons!

…while we’re enjoying sunny, unseasonably temperate weather in Washington D.C. hanging with Bubs, Lisa, Lauren and Rachel.

After spending the weekend taking in a few sights, eating too much, and being fairly glued to the Olympics, Liane and I hit the National Building Museum on Monday with Bubba and Lauren for the Eero Saarinen exhibit (he of The Arch and the lovely Womb Chair).

Meanwhile, back “home,” Will is kind enough to capture the results of week 5, day 1 for us: half the first floor done before calling it on account of rain.

We’re back in business!

Half of the first floor floor. Photo ©2008 Green Bottle Workshop LLC

Over the phone the next day, Will lets us know that we’ll need to commit one way or the other to the outdoor fireplace, which will go on the east side terrace. Even if we decide to do it after the house is finished, a footing will need to be poured, and that has to happen now. We all really, really want to this to happen. So, after minimal debate (and encouragement from Bubba), we give ‘em the go-ahead.

At week’s end, we say our goodbyes in Baltimore, fly back to Birmingham and head straight for the lot. Will had said that the framing stage is typically the quickest part of the building process. Never having done this before though (and knowing that the weather hadn’t been fully cooperative while we were away), we weren’t quite sure what to expect when we pulled into the “driveway” at 1133.

To our amazement, here’s what we saw:

It's not a lot. It's a house!

Looking through the kitchen and into the downstairs bedrooms.

A closer look at the east-facing bedroom.

So much progress in so little time!

We’re actually able to see the layout of the first floor. And, we’re also getting a much clearer sense of the scale of the house.

It’s different to what we’d imagined.

Bigger. A lot bigger.

The extra digging during the foundation process has the house sitting high off the ground, making it feel pretty monumental up close. Pulling into the driveway though, it feels just right. Not too big, not too small. Perfectly tailored to the lot.

We leave on a high, planning to return the following evening.

Just 24 short hours later, we arrive to find this:

Is that the front window?

Steel beams offer extra support for the large front and east-facing corner windows.

There it ith! The footing for the outthide hearth!

The west side (dining room TK).

Back o' the house and the entrance to the standspace (formerly known as the crawlspace).

Inside the completed crawlspace.

Again, we just can’t believe it. In just 5 short days (4-and-a-half if you count the weather interruption), we’re able to see where the middle volume and kitchen will live, the downstairs bathroom and bedrooms, and the living room.

The entire first level is almost done!

Gas prices had us just about to swear off coming to the site every day. But, with so much happening so quickly, so much for that.

Week 1: begin the begin

On Thursday, July 10th, we managed to tear ourselves away from work just long enough to meet up and capture the beginnings of the beginning.

Everything must go!

We had mixed feelings about taking down a tree, even a pine tree. Knowing that one of our (soon-to-be) neighbors had just spent several months repairing extensive damage to her roof after it managed to break the fall of not one, but two pine trees, however, was enough to convince us.

Pine tree, we hardly knew ye.

We’d gotten there just in time for the de-stumping.

Stump in.

Stump out.

Up to speed

Will Brothers and Matthew Finley of Green Bottle Workshop.

Ladies and gentlemen, heeeeeeeeere’s the timeline! Or should we say, the T.M.I.-line. If you can get through it, you just may feel you’ve lived through it too. Enjoy!

…….
2000
July - Roy first learns of the Rural Studio—Auburn University’s Design/Build program founded by D.K. Ruth and Samuel “Sambo” Mockbee) while at Lewis Communications in Birmingham during an “off-the-beaten-path” tour of Alabama for the Bureau of Tourism; Roy moves to New York to work for Razorfish

…….
2001
October - Roy moves to Boston to work for Stoltze Design

…….
2003
October - Roy attends lecture by Eames Demetrios (grandson of Charles and Ray Eames) at the AIGA Conference in Vancouver; Demetrios shows part of his 2002 film on the Rural Studio: Lucy’s House

October 31 - Liane joins Roy in Boston (finally!) and works at Selbert Perkins Design in Arlington, MA

…….
2005
October 1 - Roy and Liane are married

…….
2007
February - Move back to Birmingham, AL

May 14 - Begin house-hunting (for kicks), primarily in Homewood, Vestavia Hills, Cahaba Heights, Hoover, Bluff Park, Crestwood, Forest Park

mid-July - See “Form and Function” episode of Dwell on Fine Living channel featuring KRDB’s “affordable modern” Cedar Avenue Houses in Austin, Texas

July 22 – Roy begins a series of emails with Chris Krager at KRDB to inquire about purchasing plans for the 1406 Cedar Avenue house

September 6 – Find 900-square foot house on 1.25 acre lot on Holly Road in Hoover; look into purchasing/demolishing for building Cedar Avenue house

September 11 – Begin house-hunting (in earnest) begins with RealtySouth agent (and dear friend) Jonathan Thompson; among the listings are Pullman Flats on 1st Avenue designed by Krumdieck A+1 Design Inc.

September 17 – Find neighborhood in Vestavia with a number of mid-century houses (on/around Great Rock Road—specifically 2201), none of which are for sale; start letter-writing campaign to owners

September 27 – Contacted by Jonathan about a listing that “he knows we will love;” the newly renovated 1920s cottage at 1629 Manhattan Street in Homewood is well out of our price range, but we decide to go see it anyway… and are smitten; learn that the sellers of 1629 Manhattan are also its renovators—Green Bottle Workshop, a design/build partnership of Auburn University/Rural Studio graduates Will Brothers and Matthew Finley

October – Find 1.25-acre lot (for-sale-by-owner) at 1133 Shades Crest Road in Bluff Park; contact owner David Adderhold to find out lot is exactly 100K outside our budget

November – More trips to the still-listed 1629 Manhattan Street house and subsequent number crunching to determine that house is solidly outside our budget

December 4 – Begin corresponding with Matthew at Green Bottle to offer our praises and to inquire about the feasibility of employing them for a renovation or design/build project within our budget

mid-December – While looking at a foreclosure on Pioneer Lane in Bluff Park, find lot for sale on Linda Avenue

…….
2008
January 1 – Meet with Green Bottle for the first time (over Gia’s Rice Krispies Treats®) at the Manhattan House; determine that budget is not outside the realm of possibility

January 3 – Decide to put in an offer on Linda Avenue lot, only to find it off the market

January 8 – Now focusing search on Bluff Park and Crestwood, ask Green Bottle to offer opinions on Pioneer Circle house, as well as lots on Pine Lane and Ashland Drive

January 15 – Will and Matthew look at lot on 8th Terrace in Crestwood

January 17 - Find 2-acre lot on bluff side of (lesser) Shades Crest Road; Green Bottle evaluates site for building

January 23 - Meet with Will to further discuss building on bluff side lot; review site-specific concept sketches of “our” house and discuss design fees; before making an offer, Will and Matt will do some research to determine the engineering costs

February 7 – Receive good faith estimate from Sammy Noto at New South Federal Savings Bank on financing construction costs and purchase of lot

February 8 – Abandon bluff side lot after it is determined that engineering site preparation costs would be excessive

mid-February – Find for-sale-by-owner listing on cul-de-sac lot on Pioneer Lane; flyer indicates that seller is willing to sub-divide

February 22 – Seller of Pioneer Lane lot property accepts verbal offer; indicates lot cannot be officially subdivided until April 14

early March – Informed by Jonathan that seller of Pioneer Lane lot property has accepted a higher offer; Jonathan shows us a potential renovation property on Rosemary Lane in Vestavia—a former walter filtration station owned by the city of Birmingham

March 15 – Look at listing (a house) on Shades Crest Road (1044); make same-day offer

March 16 – Offer on 1044 Shades Crest Road house graciously declined; during a drive that afternoon to look at 1044, notice that lot at 1133 Shades Crest is still for sale (5 months after our initial inquiry); contact seller, David Adderhold, and find that the asking price is now much closer to our budget

March 17 – Meet with Will and Matthew for lunch at Jackson’s in downtown Homewood to discuss 1133 Shades Crest lot

March 18 – Will and Matthew give their seal of approval on the 1133 Shades Crest lot; contact David Adderhold to accept his offer

March 18 – Meet with David Adderhold at his home near Mt. Laurel to write up a draft contract for the property on 1133 Shades Crest

March 26 – The contract on 1133 is signed!

March 28 – Meet with Will and Matthew to sign contracts/formalize commission/pay first design fee…design begins!

April 14 – Lot is surveyed (111′ x 200′)

April 22 – Meet with Will and Matthew at Manhattan House to look at first round of design—this includes rough models, various floor plan scenarios and 5 elevation drawings (4 single-level options and 1 multi-level option);learn from David Adderhold that adjoining neighbors have a deed to 10′ of lot on the right side (as well, a chain link fence is erected)

April 24 – Meet with Will and Matthew over lunch at Village Tavern; decide to proceed with multi-level plan; pay of second design fee

April 29 – Meet with Will and Matthew at Manhattan House to view second round of design

May 2 – Lot is re-surveyed (101′ x 200′)

May 8 – Sign loan application with New South Federal

May 12 – Meet with Will to view third round of design

May 14 – Signed revised loan application with New South Federal

May 18 – Meet with Will and Matthew to view final round of design; 2 options are presented that vary in the square footage of the main living area and the orientation of the staircase; option B is chosen (2,137 square feet)

May 21 – Receive final plans from Green Bottle/pay final design fee; deliver plans to Sammy at New South for appraisal

May 27 – Receive appraisal from New South—plans appraise for 24K less than project cost (design + construction + land); discuss obtaining a second appraisal with Will at Green Bottle and Sammy at New South

June 2 – Retain the services of Terri Ferguson at Gill Johnson Appraisal for second appraisal (Terri had done the appraisal for the Manhattan Street house); appraisal comes higher, but still 11K less than project cost (we will have to pay the difference to secure financing)

June 20 – Closing day…we’re landowners!

July 9 – Groundbreaking at 1133…construction begins!

week of July 14 – Pine tree comes down, shed demolished (“You’ll be sorry.” – Roy Burns Jr.); footings poured; first blog post