Under construction: Net Zero in Ganesh Place, designed by Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA
May 30, 2022 § Leave a comment
As the owners requested, the Lerner-Campbell House in Ganesh Place, Durham, is well underway to becoming a modern, net zero home full of internal drama — high ceilings, lots of glass — and constant connections to outdoor spaces, including a deck, a screen porch, and a lower hot tub deck. Another special feature: the main bath, which will feel like a spa retreat from the stresses of the world. To see the renderings, click here.
DesignNews, April 2022
April 24, 2022 § Leave a comment
The modern, net-zero “Wolf-Huang House” on Lake Orange designed by Arielle Condoret Schechter [ M.Arch. ‘87] was featured in an eight-page spread in Chapel Hill Magazine’s January/February edition. Another Schechter project, her award-winning net-zero “Haw River House,” is featured in Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation, a new book by renowned environmentalist and NYT bestselling author Paul Hawken.
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On The Boards: Arielle Condoret Schechter Designs Modern Cliff-Hanger in Western North Carolina
April 20, 2022 § Leave a comment
Calling the site for this project “one of the tightest little corners I’ve ever had to make something fit,” Chapel Hill architect Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, has designed a modern, sustainable home on a mountainside in Swannanoa, NC, a tiny township between Asheville and Black Mountain, NC.
Designed for P.J. Miller, a musician, and artist Katie McWeeney, the two-story, modern, thoroughly “green” house will hug the flat part of the couple’s cliff-side property and include three bedrooms, two baths, an open kitchen/dining/living core, two studios/workspaces, two carports, and abundant decking for outdoor living and connectivity between the indoors and outdoors.
Chief among Schechter’s inspirations for this design was the couple’s lament over never having enough kitchen, workspace, or studio space in previous homes. “We’re trying to remedy that in this house,” she said, accepting the challenge despite the restrictive size of the property’s buildable area.
Actually, the site’s verticality helped her solve the studio/workspace problem. She’s tucked two studios beneath the living spaces, along with carports/loading zones on each end. The loading zones will create sightlines and open-air spaces within the entire volume, she pointed out, “and create the sort of positive-negative composition I like.”
Along with art and music, Miller and McSweeney enjoy cooking, baking, and hosting cooking classes. To enhance their passion, the Schechter-designed kitchen will provide a profusion of natural lighting along with an open, professionally planned interior.
Will the Miller-McWeeney home contribute to Schechter’s ever-expanding portfolio of net-zero residential designs?
“Yes, of course,” she said emphatically. “Our goal for all our houses is to be net-zero, net-positive or, at the very least, net-zero-ready.” The latter means that the completed house will be wired and plumbed for solar panels to be installed in the future. “That, plus rooftop water collection for gardening should make this a very sustainable house for this great couple to enjoy.”
For more information on the architect and her work, visit acsarchitect.com.
HOME BUILDER DIGEST: “The 18 Best Residential Architects in North Carolina”
February 8, 2022 § Leave a comment
North Carolina is one of the most popular states to live in the country. The “Triangle” region of the state, which includes Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, provides visitors and residents with a myriad of reasons to enjoy the state. It has a diverse culture, rich history, and a wide array of job opportunities. Scenic mountain vistas, pristine beaches, and fantastic weather make it a thriving area.
The state is home to vibrant communities filled with adventures. With a population of over ten million people, North Carolina is the ninth biggest state in the country, and it is still growing. For those considering relocating to the region and those seeking to upgrade their North Carolina homes, the best residential architects are necessary.
The list below showcases the best residential architects in North Carolina. These firms were selected based on their experiences in residential designs, awards won, years in the industry, and media coverage, and they are the best in the industry…
…Arielle Condoret Schechter, Architect
What separates multi-award-winning firm Arielle Condoret Schechter, Architect, from the other architects is a clear understanding of how each project is about more than designing an exceptional space. Each project has the capacity to enhance people’s lives and lifestyles, and this small firm is dedicated to doing exactly that. READ MORE
CHAPEL HILL MAGAZINE: “Lake Living”
January 18, 2022 § Leave a comment
by Morgan Cartier Weston | Photos by John Michael Simpson
TO READ THE ARTICLE IN THE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 EDITON, CLICK BELOW AND GO TO PAGE 57
New book by best-selling author/environmentalist Paul Hawken uses Haw River House to illustrate key element of his visionary treatise
October 30, 2021 § Leave a comment
The modern net-zero Paradis-Zimmerman “Haw River House,” designed by Chapel Hill, NC architect Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, is featured in Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation, a new book by Paul Hawken. The renowned environmentalist chose Arielle’s award-winning house for his chapter on energy.
“The Haw River House is a 2800-square-foot home in North Carolina,” the caption to the photo states. “Its rooftop solar array provides all of its electricity. Insulation, passive house design, energy-recovery ventilators, and solar reflective shades improve energy efficiency and help maintain a constant temperature. A geothermal heat pump handles the rest of the heating and cooling needs. It is also water independent; a small well supports a rainwater collection and purification system that, when full, can provide water for 230 days.”
Unfortunately, the author misunderstood this water collection system. As Arielle explains, a massive, custom-designed gutter leads to downspouts on each end of the house. There, the butterfly roof funnels 100 percent of the rainwater that falls on the roof into two 5000-gallon above-ground cisterns. When full, the cisterns can provide the house with water for 230 days without rainfall.
Despite the misrepresentation of her rooftop water collection system, Arielle says she is deeply honored to have one of her residential projects featured in Hawken’s newest title.
The Haw River House, located in Chatham County, NC, is part of Arielle’s consistently growing portfolio of modern net-zero residences. Green Building & Design showcased this house and other examples of Arielle’s work in its May 2020 edition online and in print. (To learn more about the Haw River House and see more photos, click here,)
About the book: According to the book’s publicity, Regeneration is “a radically new understanding of and practical approach to climate change... [It] offers a visionary new approach to climate change, one that weaves justice, climate, biodiversity, equity, and human dignity into a seamless tapestry of action, policy, and transformation that can end the climate crisis in one generation. It is the first book to describe and define the burgeoning regeneration movement spreading rapidly throughout the world… Regeneration is the inspiring and necessary guide to inform the rapidly spreading climate movement.”
About the author: Paul Hawken has written eight books published in over 50 countries in 32 languages. Five of his books have been national and New York Times bestsellers, including Drawdown, which focuses on global warming. He has been a guest on nearly every major news talk show in the U.S. and his writings have appeared in a host of national publications, including the Harvard Business Review. (For Paul Hawken’s more extensive biography, visit www.paulhawken.com.)
Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation (Penguin Books, publisher) is available on Amazon.
ARCHINECT: “Wolf-Huang Lake House”
October 27, 2021 § Leave a comment
Across the east fork of the Eno River in Orange County, six miles north of downtown Hillsborough, Lake Orange has attracted well-heeled homeowners to its shores for years, many of whom have built their very large, very traditional dream homes there. Many hardwoods and evergreen trees have disappeared in their wake.
Now another new home has appeared along the lake’s shore, nestled among the lofty trees, that is the antithesis of those houses. Designed by Chapel Hill architect Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, the Wolf-Huang house has introduced modern, sensibly sized, and environmentally sustainable living to the Lake Orange neighborhood. Inside, it is the essence of minimal, reductive design — simple and serene. READ MORE
Architect Arielle Schechter and Her Clients Introduce Modern, Minimal, Sustainable Design to Lake Orange Community.
June 14, 2021 § Leave a comment
Press Release: June 14, 2021 (Chapel Hill, NC) — Across the east fork of the Eno River in Orange County, six miles north of downtown Hillsborough, Lake Orange has attracted well-heeled homeowners to its shores for years, many of whom have built their very large, very traditional dream homes there. Many hardwoods and evergreen trees have disappeared in their wake.
Now another new home has appeared along the lake’s shore, nestled among the lofty trees, that is the antithesis of those houses. Designed by Chapel Hill architect Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, the Wolf-Huang house (above) has introduced modern, sensibly sized, and environmentally sustainable living to the Lake Orange neighborhood. Inside (below), it is the essence of minimal, reductive design — simple and serene.
Most of Schechter’s residential clients value light, livability, energy conservation, and spaces tailor-made for their lifestyles over ostentation and grandiose square footage. These homeowners are no different. In fact, the lake itself was fundamental to the conception of the 2677-square-foot Wolf-Huang house — views of the lake and sunsets over the lake, as well as the breezes that glide across the water.
To that end, she oriented the house on the site to face the lake and used large sliding-glass doors and windows to provide views and welcome the breezes in spring and fall. Windows on the street-facing elevation along with the house’s slim footprint facilitate cross ventilation. Clerestories in a roof segment above the main roofline — where a solar array is located — contribute more natural light to the crisp, all-white interior. Deep roof overhangs shade glass doors and windows from the high summer sun.
For the Wolf-Huang’s exterior, Schechter says she was Inspired by her love of Amsterdam’s colorful houseboats moored along canal banks — simultaneously luxurious and cozy. She’s made several architectural trips to Amsterdam to visit them. As a result:
“I think the Wolf-Huang Lake House feels as if it could be launched right into the Lake to float along the banks,” she says, smiling. “We hope our clients feel as if they’re on vacation all the time, except without crowded flights and long lines!”
BuildSense custom home builders in Durham served as general contractor for this project.
PHOTOS BY TZU CHEN
June 9, 2021 § Leave a comment
AMAZING ARCHITECTURE.com: “Baboolal Residence in Chapel Hill, United States, designed by Arielle Condoret Schechter, Architect, PLLC, AIA”
by Naser Nader Ibrahim
The Baboolal residence is a net zero house is for a multicultural family of four. The husband is Indian originally from South Africa and the wife is American. They are both in high stress professions: he is a pediatric anesthesiologist and she is a pediatric nurse. They have two small children and pets.
The impetus for building this house was their previous frustration with living in a cookie cutter developer house with a lot of wasted space and illogical planning.
They decided to build a custom house that would give them openness for family time, while also creating privacy and quiet areas for the parents to rest between shifts and for the kids to have their own spaces. Also, an immediate connection between indoor and outdoor space was part of the brief. READ MORE…
On the Boards: Breeze House and Rougemont Farmstead
May 19, 2021 § Leave a comment
The Breeze House is a 900-square-foot, custom Micropolis House® designed for a very tight infill lot only a couple of miles from downtown Chapel Hill. The lot is steep so the building pad will sit on a small knoll, elevated above the adjacent street.
Arielle and her clients walked the site last summer during the heat wave and were amazed, she said, that it felt at least 10 degrees cooler up on the knoll than on the surrounding properties.
“That’s due to the prevailing breezes from the south and southwest,” she explained, then smiled. “Discovering that was nothing less than magic.” Hence the name “Breeze House.”
Despite its diminutive size, the house will feel spacious thanks to the flood of ,natural light. And operable windows will ensure that the prevailing breezes are harnessed to flush hot air out whenever the owners feel the need.
Another perk: “Smaller houses mean you can put your money into some special ‘goodies’,” Arielle noted. “The Breeze House’s ‘goodies’ will include a gourmet kitchen, orchid shelves, a small courtyard for cafe-style dining, and an outdoor patio for entertaining.”
Arielle’s client for the Rougemont Farmstead house is a transplant from Northern California who decided to move east and settle in central North Carolina. He found a large piece of farmland bordered by a creek — the perfect site for starting the farmstead he envisioned. Eventually, a new barn will become home to “Duke,” his beautiful horse.
Arielle’s design was inspired by the groupings of small outbuildings found on vernacular farms all over the North Carolina. For the new house on this farmstead, however, the feel, form, and space will be decidedly modern, filled with natural light. A screen porch will offer a panoramic view of the fields around it.
“And with its perfect southern exposure,” she added, “the roof will support a small solar array.”
Click here to see more renderings of Rougemont Farmstead.
ACS Press 