exterior contractor
The new outdoor space
includes a trellis, above-ground
pool and barbecue area.
Photos: Andrew Pogue
Small Lot,
BIG Enjoyment
A Small, Narrow
Lot Makes Room
for Deck, Pool and
Barbecue Area for
Entertaining
By Maureen Alley
Creative thinking and teamwork were the keys to creating
an enjoyable outdoor space for
a house located in a historical
neighborhood of Austin, Texas.
The team was limited by various codes, including impervious
coverage restrictions, as well as
a structure that didn���t relate well
to the outdoors.
���If you���ve seen the before pictures, the space was unusable.
It���s actually a beautiful and functional backyard now,��� says Danny
Scott, project manager, CG&S;
Design-Build, Austin.
The homeowners are an active
family of four who wanted a pool
and to use the outdoor space for
entertaining. A master bedroom
originally was located on the first
floor at the back of the house
with a small deck to the outside.
The house had no public connections from the interior to the
exterior spaces.
���Because of site issues, our only
options were to build a second
floor. We started by finding our
design parameters. We added a
second floor and reorganized the
first floor. We moved the master
bedroom upstairs and put the living room in the back of the house.
The second floor is primarily a
bedroom level, and the first floor
has living spaces and one guest
bedroom and bath,��� says Marsha
Topham, AIA, senior project
architect, CG&S; Design-Build.
Because the home was located
in a historic neighborhood, the
homeowners wanted to maintain
a traditional appearance from the
street. On the inside, however, it
features a modern design. ���They
prefer a modern style, but they
didn���t want to impose that on the
neighborhood,��� Topham adds.
���The back has more clean lines,
somewhat modern, which flows
with the inside interior style.���
One of the biggest challenges
of the project was the city of
Austin���s impervious coverage
restrictions. ���Instead of using
stone or other material that is
impervious to water, we chose
a deck because it allows some
water. The way the city of Austin
calculates impervious coverage,
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February 2013
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