New building design:  Our firm utilizes the building site as a major force in determining the character of new buildings, in addition to a client’s preferences, program and budget.  To the extent that a site is isolated within nature, or within the context of other modern structures, our preference is design within the modern tradition.  On the other hand, given a site in which there are diverse influences from buildings of other eras, we seek to design in a way that respects the design strengths of existing buildings and complements them rather than clashing with them.  In such conditions, if a “design counterpoint” can be accomplished, this is considered to be the most successful approach.

Existing building design:  Although Mr. Hoover was trained as a modernist, a great deal of his professional experience has been involved with existing, pre-modern buildings.  Whether a project is an isolated renovation within a building or involves the rehabilitation of an entire building, his approach is informed by a preservationist’s perspective.  In studying pre-existing conditions he asks the following questions: “What were the original owner, builder and designer trying to accomplish?  What were they passionate about?  Can this project in some way build on existing strengths implicit in the original construction?  Can it correct apparent shortcomings?”

Mr. Hoover avoids easy, trendy solutions when working with existing structures in order to leave as much of the existing building fabric intact while meeting the programmatic needs of the current project.  Although this is particularly critical for the exteriors of buildings that are technically qualified for historic landmark status, it is a discipline that he applies to interiors and renovation work on newer buildings as well. 

Work with institutions, as with residential clients frequently requires partial rather than comprehensive renovations.  Utilizing a design approach which respects the original design ideas of a building is especially beneficial in such circumstances, since the resulting work is more likely to harmonize with parts of the building outside the scope of a current project.

In situations where preservation or restoration is called for, sympathetic design may be a matter of returning a façade or an interior to an original condition.  More challenging is the situation in which the original fabric is missing and documentation is scanty.  Likewise, if a project’s program requires major changes to the original fabric, a design that both respects the needs of the present and the legacy of the past is our goal.

In such situations, the firm’s design approach is to utilize a strategy of “sympathetic infill”, but undertaken at a smaller scale than normally associated with this term.  Infill usually refers to an addition or new building, on a vacant urban site within a coherent neighborhood.  The term connotes a design approach that is sympathetic to its neighbors, yet new.  Likewise, within an existing building we believe it is possible to respect neighboring parts of a building and at the same time produce interior architecture that is clearly of the present era.

SERVICE EXCELLENCE

Our firm is grounded in the time-honored tradition of providing quality service to its clients.  This includes putting the clients’ interests above the firms’.  We will do our utmost to meet your needs; understanding your program, budget and schedule.  At the same time, if we do not think we can meet your needs, or we know of another firm better positioned to do so, we will not hesitate to make a referral.  We would welcome an opportunity to talk with you about your project to determine how we might best serve you.