Smart Design
Smart design is durable, responsive to local conditions, resource efficient, and adaptable. We at Stevens & Associates find many of these qualities in the traditional architecture of our region.
From downtown brick buildings with lightwells in their hearts to farm houses with large windows for lots of light and good ventilation, historic buildings still work today because they were designed before electricity, heating and cooling systems, and other technological advances. Gravity-fed water systems, similarly, work even when the power goes out, and natural stormwater mitigation techniques are often better for the ecology of a site than other options.
We can, of course, improve on traditional design—many historic buildings lack sufficient insulation for New England winters—but paying attention to history’s lessons is important.
From a community perspective, traditional design is people-focused design. Built around pedestrians and horse-drawn carriages, our downtowns encourage people to walk, stop, shop, and even use the stairs. While such things improve community interactions, they have the added benefit of being good for the environment—more walkers means fewer drivers and less fossil-fuel use.
The words “traditional” and “sustainable” apply at every level of a project, from the trim around a door to the timbers used in the structure to the way a site is laid out and what plants are used.
You can read more about traditional and sustainable design at the following places: