Why an Architect? AIA Membership Is Architecture’s Seal of Approval

INDEPENDENT – MAY 3, 2018 BY ROBERT OOLEY FAIA

It’s an age-old question: Why hire an architect? To begin answering it is to recognize that an architect does much more than just help you construct a building. There are numerous talented architects in the community — each with their own perspective on design aesthetic and style. Do you want a modern-looking house, a Spanish Colonial Revival house, a French Normandy house, a Prairie house, or a more eclectic design? There is an architect out there for everyone’s tastes.

But why hire an architect, you ask?

A licensed architect is specifically trained and rigorously tested on all aspects of what it takes to design a building and apply the various building-code requirements for the structure to be permitted by city building departments. They apply environmental factors to the design that improve the use of energy and assess natural forces to increase the livability of the building. They take into account the diverse needs of the occupants, whether for an office or a residential project. In the design of a house, they have to consider some of the most intimate of requirements — where to store your knickers, for example. Why to not locate the TV/media room next to the sleeping rooms is another example. Which spaces are part of the “public zone,” and which are not?

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