Summit's architect designed houses and large lots reward careful work. We design and engineer additions, renovations and new homes for them.
Summit is a city of about six square miles on a ridge atop the Second Watchung Mountain, settled around 1710. In the nineteenth century it was a getaway for wealthy New Yorkers, with large resort hotels and later estates, and after the Second World War a building boom produced tree lined streets of architect designed houses. The city has long used single family, large lot zoning, and Summit station, where the Morristown Line and Gladstone Branch meet, reaches New York in about 35 minutes by express.
Older and architect designed homes here need structure and design worked out together, from long spans and tall rooms to hillside foundations. Our architects and engineers do 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.
Ridge top and hillside lots bring slope, rock and drainage questions. We study the site early and design footings and retaining walls for actual conditions.
On established streets, an addition has to fit the scale and character of the neighbors. We design rooflines, materials and proportions that suit the house.
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 existing house and design new work that respects its architecture.
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.