--- title: "Ellen Cassilly Architect — Architects & Building Designers | Houzz" canonical_html_url: https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/ellen-cassilly-architect-pfvwus-pf~1006861265 markdown_url: https://www.houzz.com/md/professionals/pf~1006861265.md entity_type: LocalBusiness business_name: "Ellen Cassilly Architect" category: ["Architects"] image: https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/79137ab50ff0769d_3172-w400-h400-b0-p0--.jpg address: "600 Foster Street, Durham, North Carolina 27701, United States" latitude: 35.9967 longitude: -78.8966 phone: "(919) 530-1149" website: http://www.ellencassillyarchitect.com rating: 4.6 review_count: 10 best_of_houzz_awards: 4 followers: 265 last_updated: 2026-09-23 --- # Ellen Cassilly Architect Original Houzz profile: [Ellen Cassilly Architect](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/ellen-cassilly-architect-pfvwus-pf~1006861265) ## Professional summary - **Primary category:** Architects - **Location:** Durham, NC - **Serves:** Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill - **Houzz rating:** 4.6 out of 5 (10 reviews) - **Best of Houzz:** 4 awards (2015–2018), for Service, Design. ## About ### Houzz Badges - Star Houzzer - Houzz Influencer - Recommended on Houzz - 25,000 Ideabook Saves Founded in 1999, Ellen Cassilly Architect is an architectural design firm specializing in intelligent design that fosters vibrant urban communities. Our design work includes renovation, new construction, adaptive reuse (upfitting older buildings for new uses), and urban infill (new building design that compliments surrounding architecture). We believe that smart urban design should focus on individual buildings and spaces and the impact each has on the surrounding community. We design to inspire connections between people, community and the environment. We place a high priority on creating walk-able urban neighborhoods that minimize sprawl, preserve natural open spaces and attract lifelong residents while simultaneously protecting the environment. Whenever possible, we use recycled or low embodied energy materials and reuse buildings with existing connections to the urban infrastructure. Abundant natural light, sight lines through rooms and views outside are hallmarks of our designs. Good site planning allows us to create buildings that are climatically comfortable as well as energy efficient. Our goal is to help our clients transform their creative vision into homes, buildings and landscapes they love to live in. We welcome your ideas and input throughout the design process. ### Services Provided - Architectural Design - Building Design - Architectural Drawings - Custom Homes - New Home Construction - Home Additions - Home Extensions - Sustainable Design - Energy-Efficient Homes - 3D Rendering ### Areas Served - Raleigh - Durham - Chapel Hill ### Typical Job Cost $150,000 - ## Business Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Business Name | Ellen Cassilly Architect | | Address | 600 Foster Street, Durham, North Carolina 27701, United States | | Phone | (919) 530-1149 | | Website | http://www.ellencassillyarchitect.com | | Followers on Houzz | 265 | **Social profiles:** - Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/EllenCassillyArchitect - LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/pub/ellen-cassilly/9/934/40a - Blog — http://www.ellencassillyarchitect.com/ ## Contact - **Houzz profile:** [Ellen Cassilly Architect](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/ellen-cassilly-architect-pfvwus-pf~1006861265) - **Website:** http://www.ellencassillyarchitect.com - **Phone:** (919) 530-1149 ## Credentials **Certifications & Awards** - Triangle AIA Merit Award - Poland-DeFeo House 2004 - NCAIA Honor Award - Poland-Defeo House 2005 - Indy Awards Best Green architect Durham County 2012, '13, '14 - Indy Awards Best Architect Durham County 2015 - Durham Magazine Best Architect Durham County 2015 - Leadership Triangle Goodmon Fellow 2011 - **Best of Houzz:** 4 awards (2015–2018), for Service, Design. **Affiliations** - [The American Institute of Architects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/schools-and-organizations/the-american-institute-of-architects-pfvwus-pf~1350720471) ## Reviews **Overall rating: 4.6 out of 5 — 10 reviews** ### All 10 reviews **★★★★★ — Stacey Poston, July 2017** > Ellen Cassilly and her team members including Meredith Pittman are true professionals. They made the project seamless by coordinating with the Engineer, Contractor and City Inspections Department to get to the appropriate solutions in a a timely manner. Their design for our Durham restaurant GRUB is amazing and more cool than we could have ever imagined. I can't wait until we buy another commercial building so we can work with them again! **★★★★★ — Wood Done Right, Jan. 2017** > It has been my pleasure to collaborate wth many talented and well trained Architects, and Ellen Cassilly and her firm are among the best. > She put's her clients interests and wishes first and applies her extensive knowledge of design and building technology to beautiful effect. > > I recommend her services without reservsation. **★★★★★ — User, Dec. 2016** > I highly recommend Ellen Cassilly Architect! Ellen and her team provided design services for a major home renovation my family and I undertook. They also took the time we needed to understand design choices we needed to make as well as their recommendations; they are very experienced and highly creative. They anticipated and solved numerous problems prior to construction. Many of their recommendations saved us on construction costs. They collaborated very effectively with our contractor. Their work exceeded our expectations--and we had high expectations. I would work with Ellen Cassilly Architect on other projects and highly recommend their services to others. **Comment from Ellen Cassilly Architect:** > When I first took on this project I was concerned that there might be too many disparate voices directing us but the whole family was so well organized and they are such clear communicators that the project moved ahead quite smoothly. I love the large studio space at the top of the stairs and all of the light in the expanded kitchen. The true joy is to see how the house expands when the grandchildren arrive! **★★★★★ — Randall and Elaine Love, Dec. 2016** > When we approached Ellen about our vision for a rebuild of a corner of our mid-century modern house in Durham, she spent a lot of time listening to our desires and ideas, and patiently worked through them with numerous computer drawings realized by her assistant, Meredith, and revised many times. The process helped us see possibilities that were not evident before, made our ideas more precise, and she devised solutions that fit the existing house seamlessly. The result was that our combined vision exceeded all expectations. Visitors are always amazed at how organic the original structure and renovation blend together. > The contractor she recommended, AG builders, did a great job and were very pleasant to work with. The entire project took about a year: half planning, half construction. And we were able to live comfortably in the house while major work was done. We still wake in the morning amazed that we live in a space so nicely integrated to the surrounding gardens, use of light, and supportive of our lifestyle. THANK YOU ELLEN! **Comment from Ellen Cassilly Architect:** > What a great project all around. It was a joy to work with Randy and Elaine. They had really thought about their needs and desired and yet they were very open to possible solutions. Alex and Meredith made sure that the many wonderful details came out right. I especially like the back lit display column, the retractable screens on the screened porch, the teapot 'cornice', and the jalousie window art display/room divider. **★★★★★ — Melinda Head, Dec. 2016** > Ellen and her team are wonderful professionals, truly a pleasure to do business with and our preferred architectural firm. Ellen has impeccable taste, is highly talented, passionate and hard-working. She helped us take a house built in 1990 into the present, so that our home is now bright, spacious and modern. Dare I say that we have the most beautiful home on Lake Orange now, thanks to Ellen. I'd hire her again in a heartbeat. **★ — yxh0300, Dec. 2016** > we had a bad experience with Ellen Cassilly Architect. We hired them to design our house from scratch. We signed a contract and they started the design after we had a discussion about what we wanted. They sent us some high level schematic designs, but none of them were close to what I and my husband were looking for. Since we were located in a different state, I sent them a computer-generated high level drawing of what we wanted. A few weeks later I got a letter from them telling us the architect didn't feel comfortable continuing the relationship because she didn't think we needed an architect but a builder. The letter was companied with a CD of the same high level schematic designs they had come up with before I had sent them our schematic. We had always paid them on time during the contract period. In total we paid more than $4000 for the designs that had no value to us. **★★★★★ — mj\_sharp, Jan. 2016** > I had a general contractor I was excited to work with already lined up for a room addition but took advantage of Ellen's "consultation" services. I'm sure most of Ellen's work is large projects, but I wanted to encourage folks with more modest undertakings or who just want to get an idea of how she would approach things that her consultation services are available to you as well. It's wonderful to talk over what you're thinking of doing with someone so knowledgable. Even an hour or two of walking, talking, looking, and sketching (don't worry—Ellen does that part) is very helpful. In my experience, Ellen applauds your best instincts and gently saves you from your worst ones, and all with warmth, openness, and a sense of humor. **Comment from Ellen Cassilly Architect:** > I'm not exactly sure who you are but thank you very much. I like to think that my consultations are available to everyone no mater the budget. Folks can get their project off on the right foot even if they don't end up hiring me for full architectural services. **★★★★★ — sdooda, Aug. 2015** > After seeing an article in Dwell featuring some work by Ellen my wife and I hired her to design a garage edition to our mid-century modern home in Duke Forest. Our house dates to 1952 and was originally architected by Jim Webb. We wanted something that fit well with the home and lot and that accentuated the best modernist aspects of the original home. Ellen's design was perfect, she took our input and realized precisely what we were looking for. The garage addition accentuates our home perfectly and has been the source of many inquiries from friends, neighbors, and even strangers. Ellen provided architecture design and project management services for the construction, serving as a liaison between myself and the builder. We couldn't be happier, 9 years later, with all of the work she did for us. I would not hesitate to recommend her services for anyone with a taste for good design. **★★★★★ — mwprim, July 2015** > My wife and I recently had an addition built on to our 1940 bungalow. We hired Ellen Cassilly as the architect; we are absolutely thrilled with the results. Ellen and her colleagues met with us enumerable times. My wife and I would bounce ideas off Ellen and Meredith, another architect in the firm, and they would immediately sketch a rendition. It all came together almost magically. Once the building of the addition began, Ellen and Meredith were always available for feedback and on the site to make sure everything was going as planned. This is 1100 square foot addition with a distinctively elegant, modern style. As one can see from the photographs on the Houzz website, the results are spectacular: a twenty foot high ceiling with generous lighting to accommodate future paintings, a loft that appears to almost levitate and a unique sliding track system designed by the architects and me for my artistic endeavors. The project was complex and demanding for the builders, but because of Ellen's superb architectural acumen and sensitive listening skills the final product is even more amazing than we anticipated. **★★★★★ — Hauser Building Company Inc, July 2015** > Ellen Cassilly, Architect was the architect for a major renovation on a residence on which our company was the general contractor. The renovations included a bikram yoga room, a sunspace and an art gallery. All aspects of the work were complicated due to form and function. Ellen resourced some of the best experts in the area to accomplish the functional part of the design and we worked as a team throughout the project to bring about a very successful result in style and use for the owners. Her design is distinctive and she and her staff were a pleasure to work with. > Ed Hauser, President > Hauser Building Company, Inc. ## Selected projects - [Kress Penthouse - Phil Freelon, FAIA and Ellen Cassilly Architect](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/kress-penthouse-phil-freelon-faia-and-ellen-cassilly-architect-pj-vj~167736) - Location: Durham, NC - Photos: 12 - [Caswell County Retreat](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/caswell-county-retreat-pj-vj~167809) - Location: Caswell County, NC - Photos: 14 - [Fox-Peck](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/fox-peck-pj-vj~167901) - Location: Durham, NC - Photos: 8 - [Cassilhaus](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/cassilhaus-pj-vj~167085) - Location: Chapel Hill, NC - Photos: 9 - [Salemi-Prim Renovation and Addition](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/salemi-prim-renovation-and-addition-pj-vj~1140226) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 12 - [Hamlin House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/hamlin-house-pj-vj~1140020) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 13 - [Poland / Defeo](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/poland-defeo-pj-vj~773178) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 6 - [Condominium for Books](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/condominium-for-books-pj-vj~773214) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 10 - [Hathorn Residence - Woodland](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/hathorn-residence-woodland-pj-vj~186382) - Location: Efland, NC - Photos: 13 - Description: The Hathorn Residence - Woodland was built in 1900 in a small town near Warrenton, NC. as a lovely Italianate four square house. Over the years an ‘L’ was added to the rear of the house and eventually it was painstakingly disassembled and then reassembled near Efland, NC in 1995. Our client purchased the house in 2005 and wanted to renovate the house as well as add a variety of modern conveniences, including six bathrooms, two kitchens, an elevator, and a two-car garage, while maintaining the gr… - [Four Square Revived](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/four-square-revived-pj-vj~770002) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 10 - [Farm Shed](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/farm-shed-pj-vj~774125) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 8 - [Farm House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/farm-house-pj-vj~773387) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 13 - [Chapel Hill Modernist Addition](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/chapel-hill-modernist-addition-pj-vj~771512) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 10 - [Art House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/art-house-pj-vj~770162) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 7 - [Garden Shade Structures](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/garden-shade-structures-pj-vj~775391) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 9 - [Virginia Residence Renovation](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/virginia-residence-renovation-pj-vj~1545656) - Location: Durham, NC - Photos: 8 - Description: Photos by Jonathan Danforth [See all 16 projects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/ellen-cassilly-architect-pfvwus-pf~1006861265) ## Ideabooks - [tuscan garden](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/17739163/list/tuscan-garden) — 5 ideas - [outdoor stairs](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/17738797/list/outdoor-stairs) — 14 ideas [See all 2 ideabooks](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/users/cassilly) ## Community Q&A **Q: what is the hardware on the cabinets? i love this!** *(in Photo Questions)* what is the hardware on the cabinets? i love this! A: Top Knob Mercer **Q: cabinet finish/wood** *(in Photo Questions)* Love the cabinets! What wood and finish did you use? A: The cabinets are cherry. Aren't they lovely? The grain is "book matched" so that it continues mirrored from one panel to the next. The finish is natural. **Q: How were the walls done?** *(in Photo Questions)* A: The walls are precast concrete 'sandwiches' with a tinted concrete on the outside, then insulation in the middle and then a non-tinted concrete on the inside. **Q: What is the wire like material used in between the poles ofthe rail** *(in Photo Questions)* What is the wire like material used in between the poles ofthe rail A: yes, considerably - but if you want to keep the view open it works really well. **Q: Pocket door pull brand? Thank you!** *(in Photo Questions)* A: Johnson **Q: Love that pocket door!** *(in Photo Questions)* Where can I find a double pocket door like this?! I'd love one on my (4 foot opening) storage closet! A: You just buy a longer track and install two doors. Obviously you need two pockets. --- *Source: Houzz professional profile. Reflects the profile as of 2026-09-23.*