CASTarchitecture » Tim Hammer

BLOGGING A SEATTLE BACKYARD COTTAGE – CONSTRUCTION START – a CAST architecture case study project

Tim Hammer — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 23:12:24 +0000

Kate and Ric have begun construction on their backyard cottage… They have been working hard the last few weeks and have enlisted the help of a few friends and colleagues along the way. A few key players have been helping guide us through the process:

Rusty Borromeo of Borromeo Construction LLC is providing his general contractor and construction expertise
James Jenkins of O’Brien & Company is contributing his green building knowledge and will be our Built Green Verifier – we are aiming for 5 star Built Green certification
Cory Fraser of LFD Structural Engineering LLC provided the calculations and engineering for our plan set

Ric has been doing a wonderful job of photographing the process and has put together a few galleries of the construction process thus far (all images in this post are © 2010 Ric Cochrane). He has also agreed to write up a blog post on the experience thus far – so stay tuned for that!

DECONSTRUCTION GALLERY
An existing shed (that was a bit worse for wear) was painstakingly deconstructed and all reusable and recyclable materials were sorted and stacked

LABOR OF LOVE – THE FOUNDATION
Digging in the dirt and other fun activities – the true definition of ’sweat equity!’

LUMBER FROM THE BONE-YARD
Salvaged beams, columns and decking are being purchased from Bruce Borjesson of Pacific Resources

Hot off the presses…

Tim Hammer — Thu, 13 May 2010 22:08:24 +0000

The Artalejo-Lacas Residence has been featured in the Fine Homebuilding “Houses 2010″ issue! It is on the newsstands now, check out the article which starts on page 45…

Artalejo-Lacas residence

How to Select and Work with an Architect

Tim Hammer — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 17:25:54 +0000

May 1, 2010
9:30 am	to	12:00 pm

Stefan Hampden is presenting a seminar on How to Select and Work with an Architect for the Seattle branch of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

Need an Architect? AIA Seattle’s Saturday Seminar can help answer this and other FAQs about what architects and clients can achieve together, and how to get the best value for your investment. This seminar, presented by architects, gives those looking to build or remodel (projects big and small) the information and confidence they need to successfully choose and collaborate with an architectural professional.

To register, visit the Seattle AIA website…

Backyard cottage class at Phinney Center

Tim Hammer — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 17:04:26 +0000

July 21, 2010
7:00 pm	to	9:00 pm

CAST architecture is presenting a class on backyard cottages for the Phinney Neighborhood Association

Looking for more space? How about a new guesthouse, studio or rental property? Learn more about Seattle’s new citywide backyard cottage ordinance and what it could mean for your property. We will review the ordinance and outline how to budget, plan, permit and construct a cottage in your backyard.

BLOGGING A SEATTLE BACKYARD COTTAGE – DESIGN DEVELOPMENT a CAST architecture case study project

Tim Hammer — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:37:19 +0000

We’ve completed the second round of design on our CAST architecture case study backyard cottage.

The plan has been fine tuned to optimize it for advanced framing. We adjusted the spaces to work better with Kate and Ric’s needs and have started looking at potential materials and finishes.

We’ve also started talking about systems – at this point everything is on the table, solar hot water, energy efficient boiler, hydronic floor heating systems, rainwater cistern for flushing the toilets and watering the yard, super insulated walls…

I suspect that our choices will narrow as the reality of our budget forces us to separate the wheat from the chaff. Right now however, the possibilities seem limitless!

BACKYARD COTTAGES PROFILED ON THE SEATTLE CHANNEL

Tim Hammer — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 22:55:24 +0000

The Seattle channel recently interviewed myself and CAST clients Kate Lichtanstein and Ric Cochrane regarding the backyard cottage we are currently working on together. They included our project in a broader story that profiles an owner of a recently completed backyard cottage and gives a basic outline of the new Seattle backyard cottage ordinance.

Seattle Channel Video can be played in Flash Player 9 and up

SEATTLE BACKYARD COTTAGE QUICK START GUIDE

Tim Hammer — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:25:39 +0000

Are you considering building a backyard cottage?

We’ve put together a Seattle Backyard Cottage Quick Start Guide* to help homeowners better understand Seattle’s citywide backyard cottage ordinance and the opportunities available to them.

The first step is to figure out whether or not your lot is large enough to qualify for a backyard cottage. The chart below outlines the minimum requirements for lot area and dimensions.

BASIC SITE REQUIREMENTS:
Minimum Lot Size	4000 sq.ft.
Minimum Lot Width	25 feet
Minimum Lot Depth	70 feet

The next step is to figure out what portion of your lot is buildable under the backyard cottage ordinance. Setbacks, yard requirements and maximum lot coverage all factor into whether or not a cottage is feasible.

SETBACKS AND YARDS:
Setback from lot lines	5′ unless adjacent to an alley in which case the setback is 0
Setback from other structures	5′
Maximum Lot Coverage SMC 23.44.010	Lots less than 5,000 sq. ft. – 1,000 sq. ft. + 15% of lot area
Maximum Lot Coverage SMC 23.44.010	Lots 5,000 sq. ft. or more - 35% of lot area
Maximum Rear Yard Coverage	40% of the area required for the rear yard.
Maximum Front Yard Coverage	Cottages not allowed in front yard.
Off Street Parking SMC 23.44.016	One space required – some exceptions apply.
Entry Location	May not be located on the side facing the nearest lot line unless that lot line abuts an alley or other public right of way.

Once you’ve verified that your lot can accommodate a backyard cottage the next step is to take a look at the the floor area and height restrictions in order to determine if you can meet your objectives within those boundaries.

FLOOR AREA:

Gross Floor Area
SMC 23.86.007

800′ square feet max.

Gross Sq. Ft. is measured from interior finished surface to interior finished surface. If you are planning a two story structure the floor area of each story counts toward the total.

There are three factors that set the height limit for your cottage, the width of your lot, the type of roof you choose and the height of your home.

HEIGHT LIMITS:
	Lot width
	< 30′	30′-35′	36′-40′	41′-50′	50′ <
Max base height	12′	14′	15′	16	16
Max height with pitched roof	15′	21′	22′	22′	23′
Max height with shed or butterfly	15′	18′	19′	20′	20′
Max height above peak of existing home	15′	15′	15′	15′	15′

REFERENCES

CAST Architecture

tim@CASTarchitecture.com

Feel free to email me with any questions you may have regarding Seattle’s Citywide backyard cottage ordinance

Seattle Department of Planning and Development (DPD)

Seattle Backyard Cottage Ordinance

This is the definitive legal document covering Seattle Backyard Cottages.

DPD’s Land Use Q&A Service

Any ambiguities or clarifications unanswered by the ordinance document (above) can be addressed through the DPD’s Land Use Q&A Service

DPD CAM 116B – Establishing a Backyard Cottage

The DPD’s client assistance memo (CAM) outlining the citywide backyard cottage ordinance. CAMs are guides intended to help people navigate the building permit processes in the city of Seattle.

A Guide to Building a Backyard Cottage in Southeast Seattle

This is an out of date but very useful guide put together by the DPD for Backyard Cottages in Southeast Seattle. The ordinance the guide was written for has changed (proceed with caution) but the value of the guide is still intact. It covers many of the issues you are likely to encounter and does a good job of mapping out design considerations you should be aware of.

*This guide is intended as an overview of the backyard cottage ordinance and does not include detailed conditions and restrictions that may affect individual properties. As such, it should only be used as a basic starting point for planning. If you would like to move forward with the design and permitting of a backyard cottage for your home we recommend careful scrutiny of the entire ordinance and the assistance of an architect or design professional. Download guide as a printable pdf

Demographics of a Seattle Backyard Cottage

Tim Hammer — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 00:13:46 +0000

We’ve seen an unexpected level of interest in backyard cottages in the 2 months since the new ordinance has been in effect. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the projects is the diversity of needs for each one…

We have a young couple with a small house on a large lot that would like an outbuilding with a workshop and guestroom. We have a couple planning to build and occupy a cottage in their backyard in order to open up their home for their children and grandchildren to live in. We have a third couple who have separated but are committed to raising their children together. They currently live in the same house and believe that adding a backyard cottage to the property will maintain the proximity they need to raise their children together while providing them the space they need as individuals.

In a bit of a surprise, we have yet to see anyone looking to build a cottage for the sole purpose of rental income. Although one of the guys here at the office has been running the numbers and is strongly considering building a cottage for rent in his backyard.

BLOGGING A SEATTLE BACKYARD COTTAGE – SCHEMATIC DESIGN a CAST architecture case study project

Tim Hammer — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 23:17:26 +0000

We’ve completed the first round of design on our CAST architecture case study backyard cottage.

Kate and Ric’s cottage is intended to serve as an art studio, workshop and guest house. It is also designed so that it may function as a rental home if needed. Our initial round of planning looked at how the spaces might work as a rental thinking that those functional requirements would be more restrictive than the requirements for an art studio and workshop.

Elements common to all three schematic design options:

All three options place the cottage at the SW corner of the site, chosen for it’s relationship to the more public areas of the existing home and for an opportunity to create a shared outdoor room for both the cottage and the home. They all have a gable roof which was chosen for the height bonus allowed in the ordnance and to help marry the form of the cottage to the form of the existing home. All three options have the kitchen, living and bath rooms on the first floor and a bedroom loft on the second floor. Another feature common to all the options is the use of salvaged galvanized steel scaffolding components (see image below) which we plan to use as treads for ladder to the loft spaces.

SCHEMATIC DESIGN OPTION 1

This design incorporates an existing garage which more or less sits on the South and West property lines. The city land use desk (walk in) indicated that it was probable that we would be able to grandfather the building envelope of the existing garage into a new backyard cottage but they were unwilling to guarantee it. They recommended that we go through formal land use approval early in the process. Regardless of their final call we did know that we would have to stick within the building envelope of the garage for all portions of the backyard cottage that did not conform to the new ordinance. The potential advantage of using the existing garage is that it would allow us to use up less of the yard space for our new structure.

This drawing illustrates the site plan and floor plans. The existing garage is the portion of the structure that bumps out to the south and the west.

This is a view of the cottage from the SE. You can see the envelope of the existing garage on the south side of the structure.

A view from the NE looking through the shared outdoor room.

A view looking from the dining room, past the scaffolding ladder and into the living area.

A view from the living room into a private shade garden inspired by small Japanese courtyard gardens and created in the 5′ setback from the lot line. a four foot concrete wall and cedar fence above create a very private and intimate indoor/outdoor space.

A view from the street.

SCHEMATIC DESIGN OPTION 2

The major element in this design is the creation of a covered outdoor workspace to the south of the cottage.

The covered patio to the south provides a sheltered outdoor workspace. The loft space is pulled back from the east wall allowing two stories of light to fill the first floor studio.

View from the SE

View from the NE

Loft space

SCHEMATIC DESIGN OPTION 3

This scheme ended up being the winner with Kate and Ric. They felt it was the best fit for their needs in terms of layout and size. It features a simple open plan on the first floor and a second floor that is more private than the lofts in the first two options.

Pass through doors and a simple plan define this scheme.

View from the SE.

View from the NE.

Entry from shared outdoor room

Looking toward the kitchen and dining room.

Bath with a private shade garden.

Loft.

CAST PREFAB BACKYARD COTTAGE

Tim Hammer — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:49:17 +0000

We can’t seem to get enough of Seattle’s new citywide backyard cottage ordinance…

In addition to the two custom solutions we are currently working on we’ve also started up plans for a prefabricated backyard cottage. Designed to be trucked to your home and assembled in minimal time, this compact home is your ticket to instant gratification. If you are looking for a space to make art, stash guests on extended stays or earn a little rental income – look no further…

The first floor features the living, kitchen and dining rooms as well as a bed and bath. A double height space over the living room and a portion of the dining room brings light deep into the interior and provides a feeling of spaciousness.

The second story loft looks out over the living and dining rooms and has space for an office, a guest bed and overflow storage.

The cottage is designed to ship on a single semi and assembled in minimal time. We’re currently working with a regional manufacturer and a local builder to see if we can get the price point to come in under what you would pay for a similar site built structure… Send us an email or give us a call if you would like us to keep you posted.