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WRITER-IN-RESIDENCE: Reflections on House and Home

ALL IN A DAY’S WORK, Part 4: The Energy Costs of Comfort

July 26, 2016 By Danica Leave a Comment

For a few months now, we’ve been chronicling our efforts to ‘green’ the office with the goal of achieving net-zero energy consumption. One of our first big items was the switch to LED lights, since lighting accounts for 30% of total energy use in the typical office building. Now it was time to look at the cost of staying comfortable. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Energy Efficiency, Future-Proofing, Miscellany, resilient home, Sustainable Design

Living a More Sustainable Life: a 7th Generation Perspective

July 21, 2016 By Danica Leave a Comment

As the poet wrote, “The world is too much with us” lately. It’s easy to feel despair in the face of social upheaval, natural catastrophe, and economic hardship. Many of us struggle to live a more sustainable lifestyle, but need an infusion of optimism in these troubled times. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Future-Proofing, Miscellany, Sustainable Lifestyles

Why Meters Matter: the struggle to conserve water

July 13, 2016 By Danica Leave a Comment

It was a shock when most of eastern Vancouver Island entered Level 4 drought conditions in the very first week of summer. This was unprecedented in BC. In Courtenay and Comox, Stage One watering restrictions had already been put into effect a month before,. The Sandwick Waterworks District in north Courtenay had moved quickly to Stage Three. It’s a certainty that the watering restrictions will remain in place through September.

Unfortunately, restrictions have a limited impact on consumption habits. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Future-Proofing, Sustainable Lifestyles

How Fire-Resilient Is Your Home?

June 21, 2016 By Danica 2 Comments

In light of the recent wildfire crisis in northern Alberta, it’s a good time to examine the fire-resilience of your home. Vancouver Island is no stranger to this type of disaster; a massive wildfire in 1938 produced heavy smoke enveloping nearly two-thirds of the Island. With drought conditions increasing in severity each summer, there’s no reason to believe that it can’t happen again. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Future-Proofing, home building, Miscellany, resilient home, Sustainable Design

REAL ESTATE FRENZY: Coming Soon to Your Community

May 27, 2016 By John Gower 1 Comment

Everywhere you turn these days, there’s another story about skyrocketing house prices. To succeed in today’s superheated market, buyers need the mental and financial agility to make split-second decisions, offer more than the asking price, and waive all conditions on their offers to purchase. The current market seems to be flooded with wealthy buyers, including some from offshore, who apparently will pay anything for a place to park their money. Many dwellings are selling at tens or hundreds of thousands above the asking price. Sadly, a good number of them will probably sit empty as they wait to be resold for even more. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Future-Proofing, Miscellany, Sustainable Lifestyles

ALL IN A DAY’S WORK, Part 3: The little things do add up

May 12, 2016 By Danica 1 Comment

We’re always interested in achieving a more sustainable practice in our office. To this end, we’ve found a useful infographic that quantifies office-related emissions (viewable at the link below).  This resource contains good suggestions for reducing your workplace impact. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Energy Efficiency, Future-Proofing, Miscellany, Sustainable Lifestyles

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Our Clients Say…

I am thrilled with your work. I think the drawings look perfect.  I am very satisfied. It is, to me, a fantastic floor plan, and the exterior well achieves all of my design directives re: simplicity etc. Well done! All in all, I think the whole package is entirely excellent. Thank you for the great work.
Brian N.Procter, BC
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John Gower provided the designs for a renovation to our 70 year old house. He designed a home that is energy efficient, durable, safe and beautiful. We cherish its simplicity, the connection it allows us to maintain with our community and the heritage feel that we were able to preserve. He made the process fun, thoughtful and productive. The sustainability of the design work that he provided will allow the house to be enjoyed for many more years.
Suzanne W.Comox, BC
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John has a unique ability to combine intricate elements of aesthetics, functional layout, resilience, and purpose into a progressive design package with minimal environmental impact both in construction and ongoing habitation. His designs are both mindful of the future and accommodating to his customers’ desires and lifestyle requirements. Such a complicated balance of considerations is not easy to achieve and John seems to do it time and time again. We have worked with John on several projects … Read more
Island Timber Frame (Builders)Cumberland, BC
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We enjoy the house very much and every day we are thankful for the design… We love the open feel and unique design. In fact, passers by are always noticing the house and we have received many compliments.
Jurgen & Shawn B.Midlothian, TX
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Thank you again for a fabulous job on our home design. We absolutely love it! You were definitely able to merge our wish list with the reality of our budget. We love the space configuration.
Anni v.M-BNelson, BC
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John was our house designer for a property on a steep site on the water. We wanted something modern and a bit unusual and he provided that. He was respectful of our needs and our wishes and designed a lovely and functional home. Working with him was a pleasure. He made several site visits and as well we met with him several times at his office. As well he took part in sourcing material that was hard to find. I would recommend him to anyone. We had no problems re deadlines or budget. The house wa… Read more
Kathryn W.Pender Harbour, BC
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Your building plans worked fine for us and there were no issues of any size… We moved in here in Dec.2013 and find the house well laid out and easy to live in. Our dealings with your company were straight forward and presented no problems. All in all a good choice for us.
HelmutChilliwack, BC
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John designed our lovely home in 2002. We opted for the full package (highly recommended), including interior design and ongoing support throughout the construction process. We can’t say enough about how pleased we are with our home. Every square foot serves a purpose with a harmonious integration into the landscape. John spent much time with us discussing how we spend our time in our home, taking the concept of custom home to a much higher level. We have referred two of our friends to John–ther… Read more
Crosbie & Helen W. Maple Bay, BC
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Every time someone asks me about the design for our house, I tell them how great you were to work with and how you took my attempts to change things and made them happen on paper. Thanks so much!
Constance and Lee
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We spent the night here last night and we absolutely LOVE our place.  It is just gorgeous!  Every square inch of it is well thought out, beautiful, all the views; from lying in bed, from working, from cooking, all the window views, everything is just gorgeous. Thank you so much for your work.  Thanks for your help with colour choices;  it looks great!  You’ve done a fantastic job, I hope this piece is the highlight of your portfolio, or one of the highlights and brings you lots of work.  Its a … Read more
Sam R.Keats Island, BC
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212 - 2459 Cousins Avenue | Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada | V9N 3N6

Tel: 250.871.8765 | Toll-free: 1.877.366.2502

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