Architect for northwest Ohio

Which counties and towns do you cover?

Lucas, Wood, Hancock, Henry, Fulton, Williams, Defiance, Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca, Putnam and Allen counties, including Toledo, Sylvania, Maumee, Perrysburg, Bowling Green, Findlay, Napoleon, Wauseon, Bryan, Defiance, Port Clinton, Fremont, Tiffin, Ottawa and Lima.

How are permits handled here?

In Wood County, Wood County Building Inspection issues building permits for rural residential construction, and the township zoning inspector issues the zoning permit first; Perrysburg, Bowling Green and Rossford issue their own zoning and use the county for building permits. The City of Findlay and Hancock County use Wood County Building Inspection for commercial and multi-family work. In Toledo, any accessory building larger than 200 square feet needs a building permit and plan review, and every accessory building needs a certificate of zoning compliance. Elsewhere, the state's building department map names the office.

What kind of work comes up in northwest Ohio?

Large pole barns and equipment buildings on farms, detached garages and shops on rural lots, new houses on acreage, and cottages and houses near Lake Erie and the islands, where owners are renovating or rebuilding older summer places for year-round use.

What should I know about building here?

• Drainage. Much of the region was the Great Black Swamp before it was drained. Field tile, county ditches and a high water table matter for foundations and site grading; show the drainage on the site plan.
• Wind. Open farmland means wide, exposed sites with little to break the wind. A tall barn with big sliding or overhead doors needs its bracing, its door headers and its corner posts designed for that exposure, and the doors placed with the prevailing wind in mind.
• Frost and soils. Heavy lake-bed clays hold water and move with frost. Footings, post embedment and slab edges are detailed for them, and a soils report is worth having for a house on a new parcel.
• The lake. Along the shore and the islands, check flood zones and any coastal setbacks before you choose where to build.

How do we work together?

Remotely first, from your survey or the county parcel map and photos, with a site visit when the job needs one. See pole barn drawings, zoning and site plans, new custom homes and permit drawings for additions.