RESPECT

the environment

SEATTLE ARCHITECTS

We are Seattle Architects, we have grown up here, lived here and have more than 30 years of experience doing residential architecture in and around Seattle.  This place is our home and inspiration.  Our approach to design aims to connect our custom home designs to the unique natural and built environments of the Pacific Northwest.  Our familiarity with local architecture traditions, whether they be Coast Salish longhouses or architects such as Paul Hayden Kirk or Roland Terry allow us to draw from those traditions.  We understand the particularities of weather and of light to be found here and that directly influences our architecture.

Our process and this understanding allow us to create custom home designs that are uniquely appropriate to each place, each client and to the PNW whether it is an urban Seattle home, a Bellevue remodel, a San Juan Islands retreat or a remote suburban estate.

 

What defines the best Seattle and Northwest architecture?

Architecture that seamlessly integrates into its environment, that makes the most of limited light and protects from the rain.  It doesn’t have to look a particular way, or use particular materials although there is a strong preference for the honest use of “real” materials – cedar, stone, metal, concrete, glass.  As architects our goal is for each project to be unique and in the end to feel like once built that it has always been there.

 

Is Vandervort Architects a design-build firm?

We are exclusively a design firm and do not offer construction services.  We do however feel strongly about a collaborative approach with general contractors to achieve the clients’ programmatic and budgetary goals.  We have worked with many residential contractors at all levels of budget and complexity and will be able to assist with the selection of an appropriate builder for each project.

 

Do you do commercial projects?

Yes, we do, on occasion, design commercial projects but our focus is on residential architecture.  We have, since the start of the firm, focused on Custom Residential homes and for the past decade have been bringing that perspective into our growing multi-family work for developers. Recently we have designed several projects with attached or detached Accessory Dwelling units (ADUs) and sometimes both.

 

What distinguishes a Vandervort Architects house?

Our custom residential homes are each unique.  We do not strive to have a signature look, or a particular style.  Our process seeks to arrive at designs that reflect the client, respond to the site’s context and that respect the Earth’s natural resources.

 

Where does Vandervort Architects work?

We specifically focus our work in the greater Seattle area, the Kitsap Peninsula, the Eastside and in the San Juan Islands where we have completed more than 30 projects, many on the waterfront.  We are familiar with most of the local jurisdictions and their codes and processes.  We have also worked with clients on homes in Alabama, Pennsylvania, California, Alaska, and Oregon.