Initial Consultation

An initial consultation is our chance to learn more about your project and your chance to get comfortable with us and determine if we are the right team for your project. Some of the things we will discuss: what problems do you want to solve, what ideas have you considered, do you have a budget, do you have any plans/drawings, what is the ‘look’ you are going for? Based on our initial meeting, we will prepare a customized project proposal for a feasibility study. The initial consultation and resulting project proposal should give you the comfort to move ahead with the first committed step in designing your new space.

Feasibility Study & Preliminary Designs
The feasibility study is the first of the fee-for-services design phases of your project. Our design team will begin the process of creating your plans and drawings. This stage also includes detailed research and significant investigation on our part: we conduct a basic study of your home or building site including exact measurements of the existing conditions, formal scaled drawings, a review of your municipality’s zoning regulations, a building code analysis and a review of strategies for your building’s mechanical systems including possibilities for sustainable and “green” implementation strategies. The end product of this iterative phase includes a series of design proposals showing plans and elevations for each design, proposed budgets for each design as well as estimated project timelines. When we present the results of our study to you, you will then have sufficient information to decide if and how to proceed to the next step, Architectural Services.

Architectural Services
Led by Kevin Wilkes, AIA, our design team will move into detailed development of your architectural design. Informed by your feedback from the feasibility study, we will move ahead in your chosen design direction and develop it to its logical and full potential.

We work with you, in collaboration, to create the final design and draw all needed information and specifications. This means we will work together to decide on everything from window selections to countertop materials. The more detailed we can get; the more refined both the budget and the plans. Simultaneously, we will develop detailed cost proposals and show them to you throughout the development of your design. At this point in the process, our experience can help guide you in terms of understanding how to leverage your budget. We can help you make educated choices in terms of where costs can be contained or where it may be worth it to splurge. At the conclusion of this phase, you will have final and complete architectural drawings with material and construction specifications as well as a line item cost proposal. At this point you will have everything necessary to secure zoning approvals and construction permits.


Construction
Upon your acceptance of the final cost proposal, we enter into our final agreement: a general construction services contract. PDG does not hand your project off to a builder and then simply hope that everything turns out well. We build your project ourselves, with our crews. We build your project ourselves to protect our clients and ourselves, insuring quality and integrity at every step of the process; we build to defend your best interests. Our construction team takes your project from excavation and site work through to the last brush stroke of paint. The very team that envisioned and created your design will oversee its execution and completion. It is our job to manage the quality standards, to keep things moving forward efficiently and to keep in constant contact so that you understand the progress of your project and have all your questions answered and concerns addressed. For many clients, this means weekly status meetings while for others who are on site more often, daily conversations may work better.

Project Completion
Our commitment to does not end with the completion of your construction. PDG stands behind the quality of our work with a one-year warranty on all work performed. Beyond that, we maintain close working relationships with many of our clients, working with them on multiple projects, allowing their living spaces to evolve as their needs grow and change over the years.