PLANNING

Planning is beginning in earnest now that the Zoning Board approved our variance request. We met with E and E today for about 2.5 hours going over anticipated costs ($175 per square foot) and payment schedules (monthly or by meeting pre-agreed benchmarks). We spent some time with the Design guy, Walt, who runs his CAD like a very smooth automobile with a GPS. He has a good sense of direction and gets exactly where he wants to go without detours. We have worked on some issues, but not in great depth. For example: we are converting the two closets in each bedroom to one larger closet and a second space with shelves and drawers. We dealt with the path of the stairs from floor 1 to floor 2. We added a second window in some bedrooms to improve cross ventilation. We may replace some storage space on floor 1 with a small office. etc. We are dealing with what I feel are a lot of peripheral issues as Walt gets a feeling of what we want in the more detailed design.

We spent considerable time on the energy conserving qualities of the new home. And they are IMPRESSIVE. Just a few. The house will be wrapped in a foam insulation. There will be fewer studs, and therefore more space for insulation. No plywood is used on the exterior. Radiant heat is the most efficient and we will probably go that route. Energy costs with Energy Star construction and appliance selection can be reduced by 30 to 50 percent. E and E say that as they have gotten more experience with the technique their costs have come down so it is no more costly to build in this way than with standard techniques. Also, remote computerized techniques are available to control heating in the house.

More later.

Dad