Schnitzhofer and Associates

Consulting Structural Engineers

 Charlottesville, Virginia: 434.220.1035
 Staunton, Virginia: 540.448.8321

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You are here: Home / Testimonials / Reconstructing a Historic Residence

Reconstructing a Historic Residence

Robert Hess asked S&A to reconstruct an 1834 masonry house in Mt. Sidney, Virginia. Below Robert describes his experience working with us.

Cost

We’re all conscious of cost, and I certainly was when I began considering hiring Schnitzhofer and Associates to manage the partial restoration of my historic home in Mt. Sidney, Virginia. However, what I thought would be an unnecessary cost turned out to critical in assuring the quality of the project and keeping costs within budget.

Construction Plans and Quality Insurance

Schnitzhofer and Associates prepared the construction plans, the bid documents, and provided project oversight during the five-month construction process.

The construction plans ensured that everything that needed to be accomplished was contained in the plans in a form that both the contractor and I could understand. Having these construction documents significantly simplified the contract process.

Services Provided

My primary residence is in California, so managing a major reconstruction project in Virginia was going to be a challenge, so I hired S&A to oversee the project in my absence.

This decision turned out to be a significant benefit both for me and for the contractor. S&A periodically visited the construction site and for each visit provided a detailed, written field report that included photographs of key activities during the period.

These field reports allowed me to track the project’s progress from California and prevented misunderstandings with the general contractor.

Don’t Do a Reconstruction Project Without S&A

This was my first experience in restoring a historical building and I simply could not have accomplished it with S&A.

The building was constructed in 1834 and the reconstruction provided unique challenges, particularly concerning internal framing and masonry work. S&A assembled the necessary team of experts to ensure the project specifications.

Don’t Leave Home Without It

We all remember that American Express advertisement, “Don’t Leave Home Without It.” Well, I would suggest that the historical restoration version of that advertisement should be “Don’t Restore Without Them”

My Results

Thanks to Schnitzhofer and Associates, I started with an 1834 masonry house with two crumbling walls and I ended up with a great little historic house that will last for another 150 years at least, all within budget. It doesn’t get any better than that.

My Recommendations

  1. Bring Schnitzhofer and Associates as you begin to think about the project. They will help you understand what should and should not be part of the project.
  2. Have them draft the construction and bid documents.The better the planning the better the outcome. It’s that simple. Remove the uncertainties from your planning and the likelihood of an on time, on-budget project increases exponentially.
  3. Consider having S&A provide project oversight. I found the field reports to be an invaluable tool in interacting with the contractor team.

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Charlottesville

300 East Water Street
Charlottesville, VA 22902
 434.220.1035

Staunton

909 Greenville Avenue
Staunton, VA 24401
540.448.8321

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