Reading the site before the first sketch

A site tells you most of what a building should be, if you take the time to listen. Before we open a sketchbook we spend a day walking the plot, measuring, photographing and talking to neighbours.

The ground

The slope decides where the entrance goes and how much digging the project needs. A soil report tells us whether we can build light foundations or need piles – a decision that can move the budget by ten percent.

Climate and views

We note the prevailing wind, the path of the sun and the best views – and the views we would rather hide. A terrace in the wrong corner is cold and windy; the same terrace a few metres away can be the favourite place in the house.

• Walk the site at different times of day.
• Look at what the neighbours planted and how they sheltered their houses.
• Find the oldest tree on the plot and try to keep it.

The oldest tree on a plot knows the wind, the water and the sun better than any survey. Design around it.

Floyd Miles

The neighbours

Neighbours know things no survey records: where the snow drifts, which corner floods after a storm, when the evening sun disappears behind the ridge. A short conversation over the fence often changes the position of a terrace or a bedroom window – and it starts a good relationship long before the builders arrive.

The story of the place

Old maps, local building traditions and the materials of the surrounding houses give clues for a building that belongs. Our best projects feel as if they could not stand anywhere else.

A day on site saves weeks of redesign later. It is the most valuable day of every project.