Mountain Estate, Pagosa Springs

4,486 sq ft heated, 6,800 sq ft total under roof. Four bedrooms, five baths, two stories, with a detached three-bay garage and a suite above it. Drawn 2017, finished 2018. Unincorporated Archuleta County, elevation 8,500 feet.

Archuleta County sets a single minimum roof snow load of 65 psf for the entire county, with no adjustment for elevation. This lot sits at 8,500 feet, so I designed the roof to 90 psf instead. Foundation to 42 inches of frost depth, which is the county minimum.

The client wanted the great room open across 30 feet with nothing standing in it. It is carried on a glulam ridge beam, with the deck beams cantilevered off that same line so the frame reads as one structure rather than a house with a deck attached to it. At inspection the county asked for custom metal connectors at several of the timber-frame joints instead of stock hardware, so we had them fabricated and installed.

Almost every detail in this house was drawn for it rather than ordered from a catalog: the timber truss design, each fireplace, the cabinets throughout, the garage doors, and the driveway entry gate. The kitchen was an involved design built around high-end appliances. The client was particular about materials and the look of the house, and we met nearly all of it.

I drew this house and I built it.

Construction value: $3M.