Crash test your floor plans: would an extraordinary circumstance expose flaws in your design? - from the editor

Residential Architect, March, 2003 by S. Claire Conroy

Automobile manufacturers do an admirable job of tailoring their vehicles to consumers' daily lives--their tastes, needs, and budget. Then they take their designs one step further and plan for the disaster everyone hopes will never happen: an accident. Your clients look to you to design a house that works for their daily lives, but the best architects also help clients plan for the unexpected ways they may need their house to work for them in the future.

How would your floor plans weather a snowstorm that trapped a family of four indoors for days? How would they assist or hinder someone with a broken leg? What if an adult son returned home to live with his parents for a while? A house that functions for its intended purpose is fine and dandy. It's definitely your first and foremost consideration. But nothing will expose basic flaws in a house faster than an unanticipated strain on its resources. I think this is one area where architects can prove their mettle against builder "designed" houses. You know how houses live, and you've designed them for clients of every different ilk. You can balance the multiple concerns of square footage, cost, aesthetics, and function--without making the devil-on-the-shoulder sacrifice.

I'm thinking about these things right now because I just got caught in my house after 2 feet of snow fell in the course of 24 hours. You're reading this in March; it happened in the Washington, D.C., area in mid-February. My partner and I had two friends visiting from a warmer climate. Four of us were stuck in the house for days. We're all still on friendly terms, but I learned a few things about my house. For the most part, it functions commendably. The guest room is on the first floor, near a full bathroom that doubles as the powder room. The master bedroom is upstairs at a nice acoustical remove from the guests. There are enough areas in the fairly open plan for people to gather to socialize or separate to do their own thing.

Taken as a whole, there are more strengths than flaws in the floor plan. However, one problem really vexes me: There's a pinch point between the kitchen and the breakfast nook. When one person stands in the space between my sink counter and the run of cabinets across from it, no one can pass through to the nook. It's a simple annoyance when just two people are in the room; it's a major pain when a quartet wants to hang out during meal prep. During the snowstorm sequestration, it drove me crazy. The architect who owned the house before me and designed the kitchen remodel may have thought the extra cabinet space was worth the periodic traffic constriction. I don't agree. Better to have left out that cabinet and allowed successive owners to add a freestanding unit if they wanted extra storage.

Flexibility is the key to an enduring floor plan. Sometimes the best decision is to allow for other decisions down the road. Create a long list of "what-ifs" with your clients--determine what their priorities are now, but explore also how they might change over time and circumstance. Make sure your plan is one that can weather the occasional storm.

Questions or comments? Call me: 202.736.3312; write me: S. Claire Conroy, residential architect, One Thomas Circle, N.W., Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20005; or e-mail me: cconroy@hanley-wood.com.