Essex Fells is almost entirely custom homes on generous lots. We design and engineer renovations, additions and new homes worthy of them.
Essex Fells is a small, purely residential borough of about one and a half square miles, developed in the late 1800s by the Suburban Land Company, whose partners included Anthony S. Drexel and John F. Fell, on land from the estate of William J. Gould, with Ernest W. Bowditch as the planner. A 1928 ordinance limits commerce to a single building and two small workshops, and homes are mostly custom built, many on lots of several acres.
Custom homes of this age and scale need structure and design planned together: long spans, tall rooms, older framing and site work. Our architects and engineers handle both.
Licensed architects and professional engineers on one team, one contract and one set of signed and sealed drawings. See all of our services.
Rear, side and wraparound additions for kitchens, family rooms and primary suites, with the existing house evaluated by our engineers.
New floors over ranches, capes, garages and one story wings, with foundations and framing checked and reinforced as needed.
Whole house and partial renovations, wall removals and open plans, basements and attics, with structure and systems designed in house.
Ground up single family homes and teardown rebuilds, from site planning to sealed construction drawings.
Decks, covered porches, pergolas and garages engineered for footings, ledgers and loads.
Beam replacements, foundation fixes and engineer's letters for homeowners, buyers and insurers.
In New Jersey, most additions and structural renovations need zoning approval from the town before the construction permit, and the construction permit itself is reviewed under the state Uniform Construction Code. When a design needs relief from a setback, coverage or height limit, it goes to the town's land use board for a variance hearing.
Older custom homes carry decades of alterations. We document the existing house, often with LiDAR scanning, and design new work that ties into it.
Large wooded lots bring grading, drainage and tree questions. We study the site early and design for it.
However your project is approved, we deliver signed and sealed drawings to you, support you and your contractor through the permit submission and answer the building department's review comments in house. Read how a project moves from consultation to close out on our process page.
Yes. We document the house and design the renovation and its structure to tie into the original.
Yes, from site planning through sealed architectural and structural drawings.
We deliver signed and sealed drawings and support you or your contractor in the permit submission.
See a fixed design fee in about two minutes, or book a consultation and we will visit your home.