Studio 111 Architecture

First and foremost - I wholeheartedly apologize for any dissatisfaction with our services. We pride ourselves on our personal and professional service and good relations with our clients. I am very sorry to have even one client unhappy with our services. We do our best to remedy problems immediately when they arise, but regretfully we were unable to find understanding and common ground in this case. This unfortunate outcome required us, as a company, to take a step back and look at this project to learn where things went wrong, how we could avoid making the same mistakes again, and how we could provide better service to future clients. It is our belief that there was a misunderstanding from the very beginning of the project as to the extent of our services – this client contracted with us strictly as Architects, not with the Design Build firm – and in order to prevent something like this from happening again, we created documentation that breaks down, succinctly and clearly, the services we provide. Since making this change to our process, we have completed dozens of projects successfully and with satisfied clients.

Below is a more detailed response to this review where I explain the situation from our side. I hope people reading this thread recognize that we want the best for our clients and really do value our relationship with them. Please read our other reviews to get a better sense of this - this job was truly an outlier.

When we began this job we were in the middle of transitioning from providing design /build services to solely architectural services. We signed a contract with the client as Studio 111 Architects and Associates, LLC - not Studio 111 Design Build - for architectural services only. Nowhere in our contract does it state that we are to be involved in anything beyond standard architectural construction administration services. Standard architectural construction administration services consist mainly of making sure that the work is being done in accordance with the architectural drawings and to confirm that the work the contractor is soliciting payment for has been completed. These are the services we set out to provide. Additionally, nowhere in our contract does it state that the client can't solicit estimates from other contractors. The client seemed familiar with construction and agreed the numbers were in line with current construction costs before signing the contract with the contractor. We believe the client misunderstood our relationship with the contractor who did the work - they are a separate and independent company, and one of the numerous contractors that have been involved in the projects we do - they are not “our construction manager". A separate contract was signed between the owner and the construction company to build the design we provided - a small addition and a deck off the side of the house.

The contracts we used for the project were B105–2007 Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Architect for a Residential or Small Commercial Project and A105–2007 Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Contractor for a Residential or Small Commercial Project - both are standard AIA (American Institute of Architects) documents and very clearly outline each party's responsibilities. Regarding the windows - the clients had already measured the existing windows and acquired an estimate for the manufacture of replacement windows - the client asked for an estimate from the general contractor for the installation of the replacement windows. The client compared the contractor's estimate for installation with the manufacturer's estimate and settled on the contractor. As a courtesy, Studio 111 drew up a separate 'Owner / Contractor' contract for the replacement windows with the same contractor hired by the client to build the addition and deck. We had no involvement in the design or selection of the windows and nowhere in the contract did it state that we would be involved in the construction.

During the installation of the windows, the client, and the contractor had a disagreement, we are not sure what the reason for the disagreement was. Upon completion of the windows, the client signed a document approving the completion of replacement window portion of the project and paid the contractor for the work. As a result of the disagreement that occurred during the window installation the contractor returned the client's deposit money for the addition and deck job and backed out of the project.

At this point, the client hired another contractor( Contractor 2) to complete the addition and deck job and negotiated a separate contract with that contractor. Studio 111 had no involvement with negotiating or drawing up that contract and has never seen a copy of it. Our understanding is that contractor 2 agreed to do the work for the same price as the original contractor. We believe that the contractor made modifications to the project as presented in our drawings - keeping the party wall in the addition, and adding railings on the deck to keep to the budget he agreed to. Studio 111 had nothing to do with the changes made - these changes were agreed to by the owner and contractor 2.

We did in good faith, and to honor our contractual obligations, continue to provide construction administration services on the job. We came out at regular intervals and met with contractor 2 to discuss how the work was being done and to make sure the work was being done in accordance with the drawings. We also spoke with contractor 2 on the phone on numerous occasions throughout the project. Where deviations from the construction documents were made we looked to see if the work was being done correctly. Ultimately the city inspectors approved the final construction. Regarding city inspections - the city provides their own inspections of the work, these inspections are required to be scheduled by the contractor, the architect is not required to attend these meetings.