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DESIGN-BUILD IN PLEASANT RIDGE, MICHIGAN
PLEASANT RIDGE HOMES, INSIDE A CITY THAT IS ALMOST ENTIRELY HISTORIC.
Designed, sourced & built under one roof.
Nearly the whole of Pleasant Ridge is a federally designated historic district a half square mile of 1910s and 20s houses on 6,500 square foot lots. The city enforces exterior design standards on new construction and substantial additions, and the front setback is set by your neighbours rather than by a number.
4.8★
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5 year
Warranty on our workmanship
2014
Founded in Metro Detroit
100%
In-house design, source & build
Local design-build
A whole city built in twenty years, and it still shows.
Pleasant Ridge is 0.57 square miles with about 1,150 homes. Burt Taylor subdivided the Mayday farm in 1913, most of the housing went up between 1910 and 1930, and the median house dates to 1928 on a lot of roughly 6,500 square feet.
The architecture is Colonial Revival, English Tudor, Dutch Colonial, English Cottage, French Eclectic, Spanish Colonial, Craftsman and Prairie School. A remarkably intact collection for its size. Two National Register listings, west and east of Woodward, cover essentially the entire city.
The distinction worth understanding is that National Register listing is not the same as design review. What actually governs your project here are the city's exterior design standards, which apply to new construction and substantial additions.
What we build in PLEASANT RIDGE
Services
01 - Kitchens
Reworking small 1920s kitchens with custom cabinetry suited to the age of the house.
$110,000 – $300,000+
02 - Bathrooms
Working in tight original footprints, with waterproofing and a flood-tested pan on every shower.
$70,000 – $200,000+
03 - Additions
Additions designed to the city's exterior design standards, on lots with almost no spare room.
$250,000 – $900,000+
04 - Whole-home
Full renovations of 1910s and 20s houses with their detailing intact.
$600,000 – $2,000,000+
Ranges shown are typical for Pleasant Ridge. Full tier-by-tier pricing is on each cost guide.
building in PLEASANT RIDGE
What Building Here Actually Involves
01
NATIONAL REGISTER LISTING, BUT DESIGN STANDARDS RATHER THAN A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
Two National Register districts cover essentially the whole city. The Pleasant Ridge Historic District west of Woodward, listed 1992 and expanded in 2010, and Pleasant Ridge East, listed 2007. The city’s Historical Commission handles records, education and the annual home tour rather than design review. What governs a project is the city’s exterior design standards for new construction and substantial additions, which notably do not require a particular architectural style.
02
THE FRONT SETBACK IS THE AVERAGE OF YOUR BLOCK
Under the zoning code, the front setback is determined by the established building line, the average setback of houses within 250 feet on the same block. There is no single number to design to, and this is a common trigger for variance requests on front additions and porch projects.
03
ACCESSORY BUILDINGS ARE CAPPED TIGHTLY
Accessory buildings are limited to 750 square feet, or the ground floor area of the principal building, whichever is less. On a city of 6,500 square foot lots with houses from the 1920s, that lower figure is usually the operative one.
04
MATERIALS MUST BE STORED ON YOUR PROPERTY, NOT THE STREET
The city requires that building material, including dirt, gravel and brick, be unloaded and stored on the homeowner’s property. Street deposits can trigger enforcement and removal costs charged back to the owner. On narrow streets and small lots this is a genuine logistics constraint that has to be planned into the site setup.
05
FRONT YARD WALLS SET BACK FROM THE SIDEWALK
Landscape walls in front yards must be set back at least one foot from the sidewalk because of the city right-of-way. It is a small rule, but it is exactly the sort of detail that gets a finished element rebuilt.
Requirements change. Confirm current specifics with the Pleasant Ridge Building Department before relying on any of the above. Note the department is closed on Fridays.
where we work
WHERE WE WORK IN PLEASANT RIDGE
Pleasant Ridge is small enough that residents identify by street. We also build throughout Huntington Woods, Royal Oak, Ferndale and Berkley.
RIDGE ROAD
CAMBRIDGE BOULEVARD
DEVONSHIRE ROAD
KENSINGTON BOULEVARD
OXFORD BOULEVARD
OAKLAND BOULEVARD
FAIRWOOD BOULEVARD
SYLVAN AVENUE
WOODSIDE BOULEVARD
MAPLEFIELD ROAD
AMHERST ROAD
HANOVER ROAD
straight answer
Small lots, historic fabric, and a block that sets your setback.
There is very little spare room in Pleasant Ridge. On a 6,500 square foot lot with a 1920s house already on it, an addition is a careful exercise rather than an open one, and the front setback is dictated by the average of the houses around you rather than by a figure in the code.
The exterior design standards do not mandate a style — both traditional and contemporary approaches are permitted — but they do require compatibility with the historic character of a city that is almost entirely National Register listed. That is a design problem worth taking seriously.
We don't reface cabinets and we don't paint them. We're the right fit when a house from the 1920s deserves to be brought forward without losing what makes it worth living in.
4.8 stars
Average customer review
2014
Founded in Metro Detroit
Old Woodward
Our office, in Birmingham
100%
In-house design, source & build
Good to know
PLEASANT RIDGE faq
Is my house in a historic district?
Almost certainly. Two National Register districts cover essentially the entire city, one on each side of Woodward. That said, National Register listing is not the same as local design review what governs your project are the city's exterior design standards.
Do I need a Certificate of Appropriateness?
Pleasant Ridge's Historical Commission handles records, education and the annual home tour rather than issuing certificates. The city applies exterior design standards to new construction and substantial additions instead. We confirm the current process with the city for any specific project.
What is my front setback?
It is not a fixed number. The code sets it as the established building line, meaning the average setback of houses within 250 feet on the same block. We measure that at the survey stage, because it is a frequent source of variance requests.
How large can a garage or accessory building be?
No more than 750 square feet, or the ground floor area of the house, whichever is less. On most Pleasant Ridge lots the house's footprint is the smaller of the two.
Where do the materials go during construction?
On your property. The city requires building material, including dirt and gravel, to be unloaded and stored on the homeowner's lot rather than the street, and can charge back removal costs. On these lot sizes that is a real part of the site plan.
Are you licensed and insured in Michigan?
Yes — licensed Michigan residential builder, Lic. 2102213502, fully insured, with our office on Old Woodward in Birmingham.
Planning a renovation
in PLEASANT RIDGE?