bba ARCHITECTS on May 14, 2021

New Homes on the Boards in 2021

After a year in which families spent a great deal of time at home, demand for new custom designed homes at BBA is seeing a resurgence. Historically, our work has been evenly split between new homes and renovation work. At this time, ground up construction is demanding a greater percentage of our work and we have been expanding our team to meet the demand.  We have a number of wonderful new clients for these projects and they are creating new collaborative opportunities for us as the projects progress through the design stages. Many will be starting construction before the end of the year. 

We are fortunate to have a group of clients who value the design pursuit as they work with us to achieve extraordinary new homes. In the photo gallery attached, we present an array of early design studies, for six new custom homes currently in various stages of design and production. At BBA, the first set of design sketches you are likely to see are done in this way, often by hand, sometimes brainstormed out on a roll of tracing paper in a meeting. 

We think of drawing by hand as vital to learning, thinking and communicating the art of architecture. The creative process is simply not as intuitive when the delicate relationship between brain, eye and hand is mediated by computer. Certainly, we leverage all the digital tools we can in our process, but the seed of an idea often germinates best with a soft pencil and a roll of drawing paper. 

Our current new homes include the following:

1. A new English-style estate home in a North Shore suburb, inspired by the work of  Edward Lutyens as well as more contemporary examples. The brick, stucco, and stone exterior will feature a Porte-cochère, as well as a detached pool house and a landscape design by Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects. 

2. A new vacation home on a Wisconsin lake lot featuring an historic boathouse. The walkout design offers maximum access to lake views and recreational activities. 

3. A contemporary home on a northern Michigan golf course. Nestled in the trees, the compact design features a large oversized garage and a single slope roof. Two-story south windows allow striking views of a major fairway.

4. A new city home on a double lot on the west side of Chicago. The home features a transitional Mediterranean facade, with generous windows and high ceilings, creating a very light and airy interior. 

5. A farmhouse-inspired family retreat in southwest Michigan. Adjacent interior and exterior spaces allow a summer of outdoor-centric living and pool activities.

6. A contemporary double-lot home for the near southside of Chicago. The masonry facade sits in careful proportion to the neighbors and features art deco inspired touches to create tall, open, light filled spaces. 

As we believe the array of new work demonstrates, BBA is committed to creating homes that respond to the varied stylistic preferences of the clients for whom we design them. Rather than start from a predetermined dogma, we approach design as an open discussion, exploring your ideas, and offering multiple options. The drawings presented here represent how we begin that exploration.  

Our team begins each new project by listening to the client. We create well-proportioned and thoughtfully detailed spaces that meet or exceed the individual client’s needs and preferences, while also addressing the unique qualities of the project site.  From renovations and additions to new construction, BBA Architects has the vision to see potential and the skill to see it realized.
Throughout the process, we encourage client participation and collaboration with engineers, consultants, and collaborators to create the highest quality product.  Our approach offers clients the opportunity to make informed decisions at each step of the design process, all in service of reaching inspired results.