Five years ago, Erin and Ben Roby were living in a 2,200-square-foot, four-bedroom house in Hillsboro. “But we only used a portion of the house on a regular basis,” Erin recalls. So when the couple decided to build a house after moving to Hood River, they chose a prefabricated one-bedroom, 675-square-foot home designed by Salem’s ideabox.
Multifamily housing has come to occupy a greater portion of Oregon’s housing market, but many face challenges wedging into existing neighborhoods of single-family homes, sometimes incurring the wrath of nearby homeowners (especially when they’re built without parking).
On the recent “Build Small, Live Large” homes tour, the 650-square-foot accessory dwelling unit that Holly Huntley designed and built, had 800 visitors by day’s end.
For those who seek modern design without demolition, Portland architect Ben Waechter’s portfolio may indicate a third way: breathing new life and a contemporary feel into old homes.
Imagine an old-growth forest or a watershed, where all the different parts of an ecosystem work together to keep it healthy and thriving.
Today, nearly 30 years after starting his stained-glass business, Smith designs pieces for clients throughout the Pacific Rim, including Japan. He pulls inspiration from natural landscape and his many years as an oil painter. The resulting stained-glass windows bring beauty and privacy to his clients’ homes.
When Erik Byron Broms, a Portland contractor who specializes in small residential projects, along with his wife, Chris, decided their own house was due for some minor cosmetic upgrades, the scope of the work quickly expanded until every room in their 1,650-square-foot ‘80s contemporary home—with the exception of the existing master bathroom— came to be transformed.
Designing over 700,000 square feet of space might sound like a daunting task, but that didn’t scare away the commercial design team at GHID. Hub9 is the first building of three in a master multifamily project in Hillsboro, Oregon.
Energy, understated whimsy and an eco-friendly vibe are the first things that strike visitors who walk into the Velomor on Northeast Hassalo Street and Seventh Avenue in Portland’s Lloyd District.
After moving to Portland, she found a friendly, collaborative environment in the city and the design community. She’s since embraced that collaborative environment with fellow co-workers and clients at WILLCO, a local residential design-build company.
