community design studio

our clients

Aimco, Inc.

Better Housing Coalition

Blue Ridge Cohousing, LLC

Community Housing Partners

Federation of Appalachian Housing Enterprises, Inc. (FAHE)

Franklin Housing Development Authority

Frontier Housing

Lynchburg Neighborhood Development Foundation

Rush Homes

Stop Abusive Family Environments, Inc. (SAFE)

Town of Blacksburg - Housing & Neighborhood Services

Town of Blacksburg -
Parks & Recreation

Virginia Tech

Private Developers

Individual Homeowners

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our market

Demand for affordable housing and integrated services is on the rise, as is a pressing need for competent and inspiring community design. CDS addresses these issues by assisting in opportunities for various housing types such as affordable multifamily, elderly, and special needs housing. There has also been a continued demand and increased awareness for environmentally sensitive design and development. Our target market includes urban and suburban, as well as rural areas, throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia and other states where CHP has a history of development and relationships with local community design centers.

redefining affordable housing
through architecture & design

services offered

CDS specializes in providing professional design services to like-minded individuals, private and non-profit developers, community design corporations, and other community based organizations. All of our services work in conjunction so that we can give our clients assistance throughout the design and planning process from start to finish. We provide all of our services with a strong focus on sustainable development and green building practices. We offer all our clients the following services:

Architectural and Sustainable Building Design
Landscape Architecture
Design Charrettes
Planning and Technical Assistance
Green Communities Technical Advisor

architectural and sustainable building design

The CDS collaborative design team, under the direction of Colin Arnold, AIA,LEED® AP, provides not just building design services, but also sustainable development and planning practices. CDS team members are experienced in LEED® and EarthCraftTM design and building standards, as well as cohousing community development.

Affordable housing design and building	Historic preservation
green design and construction	Design-build
Universal Design practices	Construction documentation

landscape architecture

At CDS, architecture and landscape architecture are considered two parts of a whole in which the landscape expands interior living spaces, while also anchoring buildings within their larger context.

Through landscape design, CDS interprets the way people use their living spaces within the ecological framework of the site. The CDS design team understands that landscapes--which are systems of resources that include sunlight, plants, soil, and water--are engaging spaces that link wildlife habitats, buildings, drainage systems, and communities of people. CDS creates productive landscapes that provide gathering spaces and gardens for residents, habitat and food for wildlife, and advocates the use of natural fertilizers and integrated pest management for ecologically-responsible landscape maintenance.

Master planning	Landscape renovation
Native plantings	Wildlife habitats
Community gardens and parks	Productive landscape education programs
Landscape structures	Stormwater design
Low-impact site design	Streetscapes

design charrettes

CDS staff work with residents and partners in a collaborative design-build process.

CDS' collaborative design-build approach uses an integrated and total systems philosophy to the development process. In our design charrettes, we bring together the expertise of various design, construction and engineering disciplines to create designs that benefit all stakeholders. CDS also invites residents or end-users to participate in design charrettes to include their needs and concerns in the design process.

planning and technical assistance

CDS provides valuable planning and technical assistance to non-profit developers, community design corporations, and other community based organizations in their design projects:

Building programming	Site analysis & assessment
Post-occupancy evaluations	Feasability studies
Measured drawings	Renderings
ADA compliance reviews	Zoning process assistance
Green Communities Technical Assistance	Charrette facilitation
Design Process for Community Development Block Grant applications	Design process for Virginia Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program applications

green communities technical advisor

CDS has been selected by Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. to serve as a Green Communities Technical Assistance Provider. As part of this new initiative, CDS will provide technical assistance to the region’s affordable housing developers on the design, construction, retrofit, rehabilitation, and operations and maintenance of green affordable housing. CDS will also assist affordable housing developments achieve and maintain certification under the Green Communities Criteria.

CDS has been highlighted as a regional expert in Design, Construction Review, HVAC/Air Sealing/Insulation, Construction Completion Review, and Green Operations and Maintenance.

Enterprise Community Partners has intentionally aligned the Green Communities program with standards from Energy Star, the LEED programs, and local/regional municipal green building programs. CDS has been formally selected as an expert in the Central East Coast region to advise developers in reaching the goals set forth by the Green Communities program.