Catch-up Blog 3: Finding a strawbale architect and builder (2016)

We started early on this, again it was a matter of referrals as well as using the internet.  But really the referrals were where we ended up, and we are very happy for that. 

The Architect hunt started in 2016 with us contacting Steve McGavock of Te Awanga who had designed homes we know and love, including New Zealand’s first architect designed strawbale house in Kahuraniki Road.  Unfortunately, he was not available, but he did refer us to a number of other New Zealand ‘straw bale’ architects. 

One of these, Steve Jaycock supported us through early design discussions, but was not able to take on our work at the time we wanted, so he referred us to a college at Green Haus Architects, Alex Greig.  We connected with Alex and it felt good, he understood our brief and had the strawbale design experience we were looking for to translate our concept into a design that would be code compliant, relatively easy to build and beautiful.

Finding our builder was also a mission, and a very important one.  We needed a strawbale experienced, and local, builder that could build the house with us, rather than for us…  and as luck would have it New Zealand is in the middle of a building boom and builders are in short supply in New Zealand, particularly the good ones of course!

To compensate, luck also had Pat Mawson enter our life through his friendship with my cousin James and a good deed.  While we overseas working and looking at blocks of land near Napier, we asked James if he could take a look at one for us in Kahuraniki road as it was partially forested and James is very knowledgeable regarding forestry.  James said yes, and dropped into see a friend of his in Kahuraniki road on the way out, Pat, and they took a look at the land together and reported back their feedback..  In the process, we found out that Pat would be our ideal builder; experienced with strawbale, a local and was highly regarded as both a builder and as person, and so we set out to book him in, with a whatever it takes attitude, he was the one… 

So, as we are hard to resist.. ha ha he took us on… with an agreement that the build would be at a time that would work for us all.  For us that meant money available to fund it, plans complete and through council for consent and for Pat that meant completing his already committed work.  As it turned out the time from our agreement to starting work on the build was perfect for us all, finishing our existing work commitments, securing funding, design support and for everything else..

The moral of these stories is perseverance and trusting that everything will work out for the best..