--- title: "Amacher and Associates, Architects — Architects & Building Designers | Houzz" canonical_html_url: https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/amacher-and-associates-architects-pfvwus-pf~1737286724 markdown_url: https://www.houzz.com/md/professionals/pf~1737286724.md entity_type: LocalBusiness business_name: "Amacher and Associates, Architects" category: ["Architects"] image: https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/0c23ac0e036413ff_8942-w400-h400-b1-p10--.jpg address: "237 Mount Auburn St, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States" latitude: 42.377 longitude: -71.1256 phone: "(617) 233-9588" website: http://amacher-associates.net/ rating: 5 review_count: 8 best_of_houzz_awards: 1 followers: 50 last_updated: 2026-09-22 --- # Amacher and Associates, Architects Original Houzz profile: [Amacher and Associates, Architects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/amacher-and-associates-architects-pfvwus-pf~1737286724) ## Professional summary - **Primary category:** Architects - **Location:** Cambridge, MA - **Serves:** Boston, Cambridge, Quincy, Lynn, Newton, Somerville, Malden, Waltham, Brookline, Revere, Medford, West Roxbury, Everett, Arlington, Woburn, Jamaica Plain, Lexington, Watertown, Needham, Wellesley, Milton, Belmont, Wakefield, Burlington, Reading, Roxbury, Dedham, Stoneham, Winchester, Winthrop, Bedford, Weston, Charlestown, East Boston, Lincoln, Allston, Brighton, Chestnut Hill, Hyde Park, Needham Heights, Newton Center, Newton Highlands, Newton Lower Falls, Newton Upper Falls, Newtonville, Roslindale, Wellesley Hills, West Newton - **Houzz rating:** 5.0 out of 5 (8 reviews) - **Best of Houzz:** 1 award (2018), for Service. ## About ### Houzz Badges - Recommended on Houzz - 1,000 Ideabook Saves Amacher & Associates designs elegant energy efficient spaces full of light and spaciousness even in tight quarters. With over 25 years of experience in green building design, techniques and materials including ZERO ENERGY DESIGN, we have designed at all scales, from doorknob to districts: house or condominium renovations and additions, sustainable development, renovation of historic buildings, community planning, and commercial design, for both contemporary and traditional buildings. You will experience our commitment to environmentally sensitive, resource efficient methods, materials, and systems and for finding straight forward solutions. Our clients are individuals and families, developers and community groups. Many of our clients are referrals or repeat clients. To address all our clients’ needs, we work in a collaborative process with our clients and our team of experienced consultants. ### Services Provided - Architectural Design - Building Design - Home Remodeling - Custom Homes - House Plans - New Home Construction - Home Additions - Home Extensions - Kitchen Design - Sustainable Design - Kitchen Remodeling - Energy-Efficient Homes - Floor Plans - Green Building - Bathroom Design - Space Planning - Universal Design - Multigenerational Homes - Pool House Design & Construction - Home Restoration - Drafting - Historic Building Conservation - Handicap-Accessible Design - Barn Design & Construction - Basement Remodeling - Mudroom Design - Basement Design - Attic Conversion - Staircase Design - Deck Design - Site Preparation - Landscape Plans - Laundry Room Design - Modular Home Additions - Home Gym Design & Construction - Rooftop Deck Installation - Earthquake Retrofitting - Construction Drawings - Efficient Plan Layout Design - Family Oriented Spaces ### Areas Served - Boston - Cambridge - Quincy - Lynn - Newton - Somerville - Malden - Waltham - Brookline - Revere - Medford - West Roxbury - Everett - Arlington - Woburn - Jamaica Plain - Lexington - Watertown - Needham - Wellesley - Milton - Belmont - Wakefield - Burlington - Reading - Roxbury - Dedham - Stoneham - Winchester - Winthrop - Bedford - Weston - Charlestown - East Boston - Lincoln - Allston - Brighton - Chestnut Hill - Hyde Park - Needham Heights - Newton Center - Newton Highlands - Newton Lower Falls - Newton Upper Falls - Newtonville - Roslindale - Wellesley Hills - West Newton ### Typical Job Cost $30,000 - 5 million 4-15% of construction cost, the larger the project, the lower the %. ## Business Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Business Name | Amacher and Associates, Architects | | Address | 237 Mount Auburn St, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States | | Phone | (617) 233-9588 | | Website | http://amacher-associates.net/ | | License Number | MA 5906, NCAEB, LEED AP | | Followers on Houzz | 50 | ## Contact - **Houzz profile:** [Amacher and Associates, Architects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/amacher-and-associates-architects-pfvwus-pf~1737286724) - **Website:** http://amacher-associates.net/ - **Phone:** (617) 233-9588 ## Credentials **Certifications & Awards** - LEED AccreditedLynn Historical Society Revitalization Award of a Mixed-use Bldg NESEA Net Zero Energy Building - Honorable Mention - FAIA Elected by Fellow Architects at the American Institute of Architecture - **Best of Houzz:** 1 award (2018), for Service. ## Reviews **Overall rating: 5.0 out of 5 — 8 reviews** ### All 8 reviews **★★★★★ — nmjolds, Dec. 2017** > Franziska is a delight to work with. She knows the latest in ecologically sound building material and she has very good taste. Her European background brings a blend of cost consciousness with a long range vision! The bathroom renovation she did for us turned out superbly! **★★★★★ — swaz18, July 2015** > I owned a floor through unit in a townhouse in Beacon Hill for approximately 6 years when the studio apartment above me came on the market. I purchased it and hired Amacher and Associates as my architect to draw up plans to merge the 2 units into a duplex apartment. Beacon Hill is a historic neighborhood and therefore there were many "hurdles" that Amacher and Associates had to handle in order to get permission to begin construction. There were no issues and all went smoothly! In short I was very pleased with the design, layout of the apartment and extremely happy with the way the permits for construction were handled. I was provided with the necessary floor plans to file my "new combined" unit to the City of the Boston. None of this would of been possible without Franziska Amacher. **★★★★★ — mfgbgt, June 2015** > I have known Fran for over 10 years, admiring her work and her relentless focus on Sustainable Design, AIA/BSA committees, and thru her own practice. I have occasionally worked in Fran’s office, consulting on projects, personally experiencing her strong dedication to sustainable design and community involvement to improve our qualities of life thru a healthy environment .Fran’s talents are visible in her daily interactions and practice of Urban Design and Residential Design. Given her unique abilities she is able to listen, visualize and quickly understand, convey and transform the important relevant planning, design and theoretical issues underlying a project to the client and her team. I highly recommend Fran. Michael F. Gebhart Architect FAIA NCARB **★★★★★ — karen4672, June 2015** > Amacher and Associates is run by Ms. Franziska Amacher who is a tremendous visionary and superb architect whose designs fully take into account the needs of the client. We had experience with two other firms who ignored our concerns and wanted to bring a denser more complicated design to us. Ms. Amacher is grounded in her connections with nature and looks for simple lines, lots of light, energy efficiency, open concepts and beautiful products. Every aspect of her company exudes professionalism. Ms. Amacher is an excellent listener and responds to all concerns with thoughtful ideas in a clear, respectful approach. We have worked with Amacher and Associates for more than 8 years in the design of an annually-held large city festival, a civic project for greening a large urban hardscape, and on a few residential projects involving green roofs. Amacher and Associates always deliver on time, according to plan, and with a smile. It is a pleasure to work with Amacher and Associates and they receive our five-star rating for excellence each time! **★★★★★ — dms54, Dec. 2014** > After interviewing a handful of architects, we hired Franziska Amacher to design our renovation/addition. Our house, as purchased with its unfinished attic, was too small for our growing family. With my wife’s mother living on the first floor, expanding into the attic and towards the rear was the only choice in this dense neighborhood. Since there are some good views towards the distant forested hill over a long two-story storage building for the Department of Public Works, the addition at the rear at the attic level is oriented towards this coveted view. When sitting on the deck juxtaposed with the 80-foot silver maple, it feels like a tree house. The second floor has many smaller rooms which lent themselves to bedroom space – rather quiet when occupied and providing a noise barrier between the attic and first floors. The redesigned stairs’ transparency expands the space and connects the second and attic floors. As part of the project, the house was well-insulated with spray foam that lowered the heating bills in the expanded space. **★★★★★ — carolynfuller, Nov. 2014** > Franziska worked with us to design a transformation of our three story 1868 workers housing building with many small dark rooms into a stunning open and bright home for us and a small apartment for us to rent. Her knowledge of natural lighting is superb. We now have morning sunlight pouring from one end of our house to the other from early Fall to late Spring. This really brightens our spirits daily and I never would have thought of it. She was a pleasure to work with. I'm very detail oriented and in some cases, particularly both kitchens, I spent a lot of her time suggesting different options. She never became impatient and the results of our exchanges was always better than what I'd had in mind. She is also particularly good at making small spaces function and feel as if they are much larger. The apartment is only 400 sq ft and yet it gets rave reviews from our tenants. Franziska is also very knowledgeable about retrofit energy conservation. She cut our energy use to less than half of what it was. **★★★★★ — davidgass, Nov. 2014** > Ms. Amacher designed: > > 1\. Conversion of building into 31 unit artist live-work community. > 2\. Conversion of museum into artist 20+ artist live-work. > 3\. Conversion of historic commercial building into affordable condominiums and commercial space in a > neighborhood with a lot of social problems. Won many awards. Location: > 4\. Gardens at school and park. Won awards. > > She was very good at working with clients, listening to their needs and responding with creative, practical solutions, whether artists or low-income working people. **★★★★★ — Chungha Cha, Oct. 2014** > Franziska worked on our deep energy retrofit of a 100+ year old stick frame 2-family house into Somerville's first Net Zero Energy Home. Franziska has a very deep understanding of green buildings and sustainability. She knows what she is doing and makes sure that the design and construction details are executed perfectly .... and very pleasant to work with. ## Selected projects - [Net Zero House - Designed to use less energy than it produces](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/net-zero-house-designed-to-use-less-energy-than-it-produces-pj-vj~552289) - Location: Somerville, MA - Photos: 24 - Description: This net zero energy building was transformed from an energy guzzler to a resilient and healthy spacious 2 family, designed to use less energy than it produces. Careful planning resulted in high efficiency of the building envelop, of the heating, cooling and ventilation systems. The solar panels provide the energy needed to run this two family. The sustainability of the design is enhanced by resource efficiency: many of the building materials used are reused or recycled, for example bathroom flo… - [Kitchen/Living Room](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/kitchen-living-room-pj-vj~1345186) - Location: Gloucester, MA - Photos: 2 - Description: This 2 bedroom unit still is spacious despite being just 656 SF. - [Greened Colonial House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/greened-colonial-house-pj-vj~935792) - Location: Newton, MA - Photos: 6 - Description: Green Renovation to Newton home using all environmentally friendly materials and methods: By reconfiguring the layout and connecting rooms that were very isolated, the house feels spacious and full of day light and works much better for a modern family with a spacious kitchen at the heart of the house. We even found space for a new library room. We did not have to build an addition, that the client thought was necessary This renovation has much improved the thermal and environmental comfort with… - [Deep Energy Retrofits](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/deep-energy-retrofits-pj-vj~634621) - Location: Cambridge, MA - Photos: 8 - [Renovation & kitchen addition to make an energy efficinet family friendly house](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/renovation-and-kitchen-addition-to-make-an-energy-efficinet-family-friendly-house-pj-vj~594257) - Location: Arlington, MA - Photos: 7 - Description: This House was originally built in the fifties and had not been updated since. An L-shape kitchen configuration was not functioning well and the layout of the main floor consisted of a string of separated rooms with the kitchen L along one side. The owners wanted to make the kitchen into the center of activity and renovate the house with as many green features. We redesigned the kitchen and expanded it by adding the space in the elbow and opening it up to the backyard and let day light stream in… - [Deep Energy Retrofits House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/deep-energy-retrofits-house-pj-vj~566798) - Location: Cambridge, MA - Photos: 12 - Description: We reinvented this 170 year old house to an energy efficient spacious house with room for entertaining and guests to stay and a small second apartment in a dense inner city. The house had many small rooms and very steep narrow stair cases. These were removed together with many interior partitions. With no details having remained from this once elegant mid 19th century house, we chose to expose interior layers as part of the house décor and used a rougher materiality for the new elements, such as… - [Connecting Light to Nature](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/connecting-light-to-nature-pj-vj~619774) - Location: Watertown, MA - Photos: 10 - [Transformation to a super insulated solar heated house](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/transformation-to-a-super-insulated-solar-heated-house-pj-vj~634657) - Location: Medford, MA - Photos: 7 - Description: The house had two small 1 bedroom apartments, a basement and an attic. We redesigned the attic/roof to optimize solar exposure and compress the volume of the attic to a living room and kitchen with two decks. Result= a 3 bedroom two story apartment (2nd and 3rd floors). By incorporating the basement we created a second 2 story 3 bedroom apartment. The envelope of the house has very high insulation values, so that the heating bills have become insignificant. - [Small house transformed to be spacious, light filled and cozy](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/small-house-transformed-to-be-spacious-light-filled-and-cozy-pj-vj~935933) - Location: Nahant, MA - Photos: 4 - [Transform a bathroom for senior living](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/transform-a-bathroom-for-senior-living-pj-vj~2836086) - Location: Cambridge, MA - Photos: 1 [See all 10 projects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/amacher-and-associates-architects-pfvwus-pf~1737286724) ## Ideabooks - [Wish List](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/95219338/list/wish-list) — 5 ideas - [Bathroom](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/27473612/list/bathroom) — 9 ideas - [Outdoors](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/28085191/list/outdoors) — 9 ideas - [Stairs](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/27473710/list/stairs) — 9 ideas - [Kitchen](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/29036968/list/kitchen) — 8 ideas - [Living Spaces / Dining / Kitchen](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/27473479/list/living-spaces-dining-kitchen) — 24 ideas - [Bedroom](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/27473597/list/bedroom) — 3 ideas [See all 7 ideabooks](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/users/amacher) ## Community Q&A **Q: what type of flooring is this? thanks** *(in Photo Questions)* A: This is oak. Most other rooms are recycled southern white pine. --- *Source: Houzz professional profile. Reflects the profile as of 2026-09-22.*