The house as it stands
A two-story rowhouse cut from the street to the yard. Each number marks where one of the six changes happens.
Philadelphia houses, made better.
You don’t always need a different house. Sometimes you need a better plan, another floor or a way to get outside. We design rowhouse renovations, additions, roof decks and new homes throughout Philadelphia.
What could your rowhouse become?
More room upstairs. A kitchen that opens to the yard. Daylight in the middle of the house. Explore six changes that can make a rowhouse work better.
Add a third floor
Make room for another bedroom, a private suite or a place to work without giving up the yard.
- Design
- The stair carries on up into the new floor, directly above the flight below. Setting the new front wall back from the old one keeps the block’s cornice line intact from the sidewalk.
- Permits
- Depends on the zoning district’s height limit and on what the existing walls and footings can carry. We look at both early.
Put a deck on the roof
Create a place to spend time outside, above the noise of the street.
- Design
- The stair continues up, directly above the flight below, into a small pilot house with a door onto the deck. The deck can go in front of the pilot house and behind it, on new joists over the existing roof, carried to the party walls, with an open guard around it.
- Permits
- Usually a zoning permit as well as a building permit, and a structural engineer for the framing.
Build out the back
Give the kitchen room to grow and bring the backyard into daily use.
- Design
- The old rear wall opens up on a new beam, and the room steps out into the yard on its own foundation, with a skylight over it.
- Permits
- Has to fit the rear-yard and open-area limits of the zoning district, which decide how much yard must stay.
Lower the basement
Make better use of the space beneath the house by increasing its headroom.
- Design
- The slab comes out and a new one goes in lower. Where the footings need it, the walls are underpinned to reach below the new floor, and the stair gains a few steps.
- Permits
- Underpinning at the party walls brings structural engineering, notice to the neighbors and often a condition survey of the houses next door before work starts.
Bring light into the middle
Bring natural light into the rooms furthest from the windows.
- Design
- A skylight over the stair lets daylight fall through the stair well to the floors below.
- Permits
- Part of the renovation’s building permit; the new roof opening is drawn with its framing.
Keep the front
Keep the brickwork, cornice and stoop that give the house its place on the block.
- Design
- The facade, cornice and stoop usually stay as they are, and the new work happens behind and above them.
- Permits
- On historic buildings and blocks, the Historical Commission approves the work first; steps, window wells and curb cuts go to the Streets Department.
Across the city
We’ve expanded rowhouses, built on narrow lots and found new uses for older buildings across Philadelphia. Here’s some of that work.
A Philadelphia house comes with a few complications.
Shared walls, tight lots, existing structure and zoning all influence what’s possible. We work through those questions as the design develops, so you can make decisions with a clearer picture of the project.
Room to build. We review the property’s zoning and test how an addition or new house could fit. If the design needs zoning relief, we explain that path before you commit to it.
Working with the existing house. We document the building and coordinate structural input where needed, paying particular attention to additions, basement work and shared walls.
Getting the drawings through review. We prepare the architectural drawings, coordinate the consultants in our scope and respond to questions from the reviewing agencies.
Services
Additions, roof decks, new houses, conversions and the drawings L&I asks for, for houses all over the city.
Typical scope
- A laser-scanned survey of the house, so the design starts from accurate walls, floors and party-wall lines.
- Concept plans and 3D views to shape with us, on the drawings or live in a Virtual Drafting Session.
- Structural engineering for new framing, beams, additions or underpinning, coordinated with our drawings.
- Permit drawings, and answers to the plan reviewer’s comments.
Good to know
- How long does it take?
- For a typical renovation or addition, concept drawings are usually ready about three weeks after the survey. Permit drawings typically take another three weeks after concept approval, with additional time where the scope or engineering requires it. Permit review follows. Your proposal sets out the schedule for your project.
Permits and approvals
- Work that adds space or changes the footprint usually needs a zoning permit as well as a building permit; for smaller projects such as an addition to a single-family house, the City can review the two together.
- Excavation, underpinning or demolition next to a neighboring building can bring extra requirements, such as notice to the adjoining owner and a survey of the neighboring building before work starts.
- When the structural engineer’s design calls for special inspections, the permit application needs a Statement of Special Inspections and an agreement signed by the owner, contractor, engineer and inspection agency.
Helpful to send
- The address, so we can look up the zoning district and past permits
- A few photos: the front, the back and the rooms you want to change
- How many stories it is now, and what you hope to add
- Any old drawings, surveys or permits
Ellsworth Street RowhouseGordon Street RowhouseMoyer Street AdditionTalk about your rowhouse
For existing rowhouses and new houses alike.
Typical scope
- Checking the existing roof framing, and engineering whatever the deck needs to bear on.
- Planning the way up: a stair with a pilot house or a roof hatch, depending on the house and the rules.
- Railings, setbacks from the front wall and the deck surface, drawn and detailed for the permit set.
Good to know
- What does the structure need?
- A deck usually sits on new framing above the existing roof, carried to walls that can take it. A structural engineer sizes it; we coordinate the drawings.
- Pilot house or hatch?
- It depends on how the deck will be used, the stair below and what the zoning and code allow on your block. We look at both early, in the concept.
Permits and approvals
- In Philadelphia, adding a roof deck usually needs a zoning permit as well as a building permit.
- A deck on an existing roof usually needs a structural engineer, and special inspections when the engineer’s design calls for them.
- Historic buildings and districts need Historical Commission review.
Helpful to send
- The address
- How you get onto the roof today: a hatch, a stair, or no way up
- A photo of the roof and of the houses on each side
- Whether you want a pilot house or a hatch, if you know
Ellsworth Street RowhousePine Street ConversionMoyer Street AdditionTalk about a roof deck
Typical scope
- A zoning check of the lot: the use, height, rear yard and open area it allows.
- A site visit, and a scan of the neighboring buildings so the new house fits exactly where they sit.
- Coordination with the structural engineer, and with the civil or MEP engineer for the utility plan a new house needs.
- Permit drawings, with zoning drawings first when the design needs relief.
Permits and approvals
- A new house needs zoning approval before its building permit can be issued; the City requires new one- and two-family houses to be filed as a combination permit.
- New buildings and new water or sewer service need a Water Department utility plan and meter sizing, usually from a civil or MEP engineer.
- Excavation, underpinning or demolition next to a neighboring building can bring extra requirements, such as notice to the adjoining owner and a survey of the neighboring building before work starts.
Helpful to send
- The address or parcel number
- Whether the lot is vacant or has a building to come down
- How many stories and bedrooms you have in mind
- Any survey of the lot
Adding units is as much a zoning question as a design one, so we start with what the lot allows.
Typical scope
- A first look at the zoning district and what a change in the number of units would need.
- Unit layouts around stairs, exits and fire separation between units.
- Coordination with structural and MEP engineers when the work calls for it.
- Zoning drawings for an attorney when the design needs relief, and the permit set after.
Good to know
- Can I turn my house into a duplex or triplex?
- It depends on the zoning district and the building. Where it isn’t allowed by right, it needs a variance from the Zoning Board. In our experience filing to hearing is often about 4 to 5 months, and nobody can promise the outcome.
- Do you handle the zoning appeal?
- We prepare the zoning drawings. A zoning attorney, hired by the owner, files the appeal and handles the community meeting and the hearing; Jared can join to present the design.
Permits and approvals
- Adding units usually needs a zoning permit as well as a building permit, and zoning relief if the district doesn’t allow it by right.
- Changing the number of units can require a Certificate of Occupancy.
- New water or sewer service may need a Water Department utility plan, reviewed before the permit application.
Helpful to send
- The address, for the zoning district
- How many units there are now and how many you have in mind
- What is on the ground floor today
- Whether anyone lives or works there now
Pine Street ConversionFederal StreetPine Street Mixed-UseTalk about a conversion
When L&I cites a building as unsafe, the clock is already running. We move quickly, so your contractor or expediter can file and the repairs can begin.
Typical scope
- A site visit to document each condition in the violation.
- Make-safe drawings, usually with a structural engineer: what is shored, braced, repaired or replaced on each level.
- Quick revisions if the examiner asks. Make-safe files have to be resubmitted fast or they can be closed.
Permits and approvals
- A make-safe application gets one review, and only work that directly fixes the cited conditions is approved.
- Other renovations need a separate, regular permit afterward.
- Unpermitted-work violations are usually fixed by legalizing the work with a regular permit.
Helpful to send
- The violation notice and the case number
- The deadline on the notice
- Photos of each condition it lists
- Access to the building for a site visit
Scanning, modeling & visualization
We laser-scan existing spaces and use that information to develop drawings and 3D models for the project. A detailed record of the building gives the design team a clearer starting point for renovations and additions.
Part of most projects that start from an existing building. Also available on its own: a point cloud, with existing-conditions drawings and a 3D model if you need them.
Explore an existing building remotely and return to it as questions arise. Digital walkthroughs help clients and project teams understand the spaces without relying on photographs alone.
Available for the buildings we scan, with a link you keep.
Work through changes live with an architect. We explore layouts and update the drawings or model while discussing the options with you.
Included in your design fee.
How it runs
For renovations, we start by recording the existing house, party walls included. For a new home, we begin with the lot and its surroundings. Your contractor or an expediter files our drawings with the City, and we answer the reviewer’s comments.
- 01Proposal
- 02Building surveyAbout 45 minutes on site for most houses
- 03ConceptUsually about 3 weeks from the survey
- 04Permit drawingsUsually about 3 weeks after you approve the concept
- 05Zoning and building permits
Questions people ask
No. Your contractor, a permit expediter or you file it in eCLIPSE with our drawings, and we answer the plan reviewer’s comments. If you don’t have someone, we work closely with Permit Philly.
All over the city — South Philadelphia, Point Breeze, Fishtown, North Philadelphia, Center City and beyond. Our studio is on West Jefferson Street in Brewerytown.
Next step
Let’s look at your house.
Send the address and tell us what you’d like to change.
Get a ballpark design fee A preliminary architectural fee range by email, for houses and buildings of up to four homes. The design fee only, not the cost of construction.