General Description
Two consultants are used to measure and document existing conditions: the Land Surveyor and the Building Documenter.
The Land Surveyor measures all aspects of the site and creates a property survey drawing.
The Building Documenter, if required, measures and documents the existing buildings.
Both work products are required for the Architect to prepare the feasibility study and to start preliminary schematic designs. Both consultants provide computer-aided design (CAD) drawings to be used as base drawings for the new designs.
Phase 1a: Pre-Design
Existing Conditions
The Land Surveyor measures all aspects of the site. After finding a previously marked reference point, the surveyor establishes the position of the property and locates the key points of the boundary based on legal documents filed with the County Records..
The surveyor also documents what is on the property including the house, accessory structures, driveways, paths, pool, trees and other major objects. In addition, the surveyor may also create a topographic map that will delineate the slope of the land.
The surveyor contracts directly with the homeowner but will confirm with the Architect which aspects of the property will be important to document for the project.
The sample survey (above) shows the property boundaries as well as the house, barn, paths, trees and topographic lines.
Site Survey Sample shown above right
The Building Documenter measures and documents all the floor plans and building exterior elevations. The floor plans will be used in the feasibility study to calculate the existing floor area which helps determine how much new floor area can be added. Both the existing plans and exterior elevations will be used as the starting point for the new architectural designs for renovations and additions.
The Building Documenter contracts with the Architect and is included in the base Architectural Design Services.
Existing Building Documentation
Sample floor plan shown above Sample exterior elevation shown at right
