About Rockingham County, VA

It is fair time in the Valley. The Rockingham County Fair is coming up this August and we will once again have a booth at the event. This is a chance for us to meet people, discuss their questions about architecture, and help them save money through our understanding of building science. It is not the typical place for an architectural firm to be found, but it has been very effective for us the last several years. We have met many people and had some great discussions. Will you be at the fair this year, we would love to talk to you about saving money!

Our first green house in Harrisonburg is under construction and it has many cool features, but the vegetated retaining wall my be the best. The site required the use of a retaining wall to mitigate storm water erosion on a steep slope and higher levels of maintenance for the homeowner. So we looked at multiple options for the retaining wall and found a great product that allows you to plant the wall. Once the structure is grown in, it will be a wall of vegetation rather than a wall of masonry. Here is the installation picture, I cannot wait to post some finished images.

Kitchen Remodeling Mistakes

In this economy, many people are staying in their current homes, so they are looking at ways to renovate. Regardless of your motivation to renovate, two rooms usually get attention first, the kitchen and the master bedroom. In the kitchen there are countless options and trends that you will encounter if you start looking. My warning is don’t fall for a trend, instead look at timeless solutions, quality features, and value added changes.

Some items to pay close attention to that you might not find in a magazine are as follows:

1. Make sure the finishing details are top notch. The way a drawer closes is important, but what the cabinet is made of is more important. Look at the structure of the box, not just the finish of the surface.

2. Ask about the warranty on items. While I know it is hard to collect on many warranties, they will indicate the quality of lack of quality of items like the finish on a cabinet or fixture.

3. Understand what appliances you want so the cabinets can be designed around their function and size.

4. Don’t go for grand for the sake of grand, look at function for the way that you use the kitchen. Make sure you are working with someone that understands your work triangle, not just the typical averages.

5. Make sure you maximize your storage solutions with flexible options that will allow for changing conditions in the future.

6. Be sure to include a hood vent over the stove, an actual hood, not just a microwave. Once you add the hood vent, make sure your designer knows the impact on your HVAC system (yes there is an important link)

7. Careful attention to lighting is critical in the kitchen, perhaps more than any other room. Work with a designer that knows the difference between a well lit room and a properly lit kitchen.

8. Think about the chemicals that are in the products you select, there are many options for healthy solutions.

9. Have a plan in place before going to the contractor and asking for a price.

10. Last but not least, plan for the future, have counters are different heights, allow for the adaption of your kitchen, or plan ahead for a roll under space in the kitchen.

Keep the sustainability dialog going! Meet up with Harrisonburg's eco-conscious, environmentally-concerned community members for drinks and good company once a month! The Harrisonburg event that's all about being green and establishing the networks that make change happen!

Harrisonburg Green Drinks, an opportunity for eco-friendly individuals to network, socialize, and discuss various environmental issues in an informal setting.

Thursday, July 28 - 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm

Dave's Taverna Downtown

I'm excited to write this post, having been anticipating the day when I and residents in Harrisonburg could not only stream online live city council meetings but also easily access archived video. This past Tuesday marked the first live-streamed Harrisonburg City Council meeting. But, there are some very exciting and useful tools in addition to simple streaming.

The platform city council is using lets users take out snippets of the meetings and easily get links and embed code to share a specific portion of the meeting with friends via email, in social networks, and on blogs.

The video tool allows users to not only see the video, but access the same documents received by council and skip to agenda items of most interest.

Check it out - here's where I mentioned these new tools at the end of Tuesday's meeting (I admit, it's not the most exciting cinematography!).