Custom Design-Build in Denver, CO
Most homeowners hire two companies to do one job. An architect draws the plans. A contractor builds them. Between those two — the gap where projects go wrong.
What Design-Build Actually Means
Design-build isn’t a marketing term. It’s a structural decision about how a project is organized.
In the traditional model, you hire an architect to draw plans, then take those plans to a contractor to price and build. When those two things conflict — and they always do at some point — you’re the one in the middle sorting it out. Cost overruns, design compromises, timeline delays: most of them trace back to that gap.
In our work, design decisions are made with construction costs in mind from the first sketch. What gets drawn is what gets built.
Arch Design & Build was built to close that gap.
Financing Available
Don’t let budget hold you back. We work with trusted partners
Building Our Own Designs
Arch Design & Build was founded by an architectural designer and a structural engineer. The two people responsible for your project’s architecture and engineering are the same two people who run the firm and personally oversee every construction.
Both founders live in the Denver Metro Area and present on your project from the first site visit through the final walkthrough.
What People Actually Ask Us to Build
Not every project fits a standard service category. Some of the most interesting conversations we have start with something like: “I know this sounds unusual, but…”
A recording studio in the basement. A homeowner in Washington Park wanted a proper home studio — not just acoustic foam on drywall, but a genuinely isolated space. That means floating floor systems, decoupled wall assemblies, specific HVAC routing to prevent vibration transfer through the ductwork. Acoustic design has to live in the architectural drawings from day one, not get bolted on by a GC who’s never built one. Gary designs the room. Igor signs off on the floating floor structure. It gets built once, correctly.
A dance studio for the kids. A family in Hilltop wanted a sprung maple floor, wall-to-wall mirrors, a barre, and a ceiling high enough to actually use. The sprung floor requires structural calculation — it’s not the same as standard basement framing. The mirrors need engineering for safe mounting at that scale. This is exactly where having a structural engineer in the room during the design phase changes everything.
A proper home gym with a squat rack and platform. Sounds simple. It’s not — free weights on a finished floor need a platform engineered to absorb real load, not improvised from lumber. The structural and acoustic separation from the rest of the house matters too, especially in older Denver homes with shared floor joists.
A garage converted to a private office. Separate from the house, quiet, climate controlled, its own entrance. Zoning review, structural assessment of the existing structure, architectural design of the interior — three separate conversations with three separate firms, or one conversation with us.
A sunroom that actually works year-round. Denver’s temperature swings — from 70°F in October to a snowstorm three days later — make most sunrooms uncomfortable for six months of the year. A four-season room that handles Colorado climate requires thermal mass design, proper glazing specification, and HVAC integration. That’s an architectural decision, not a contractor decision.
The common thread: any project where the what and the how are inseparable. Where the design only works if the engineering and construction are already in the room. That’s what design-build was invented for — and what a licensed architect and structural engineer building their own projects makes possible.
How We Work
1
Free In-Home Consultation
We look at the actual space. Ceiling height, existing mechanicals, moisture, egress options. You get a real scope
2
VR/3D Design
See the finished basement before anything is framed (available after sighning a contract)
3
Structural Engineering & Permitting
Denver CPD applications, egress window permits, electrical and plumbing sign-offs. Our team manages it entirely
4
Construction
Fixed price. Clean site. One contact from framing through final inspection
Colorado Class A Contractor License
The Class A Contractor License is the highest level issued within the state — it covers unlimited construction, alteration, and demolition of any structure
We carry general liability insurance — so your home and your investment are protected from day one
Where We Work in Denver
We serve the entire Denver Metro Area — Denver, Centennial, Arvada, Lakewood, Littleton, Westminster, Aurora, Golden, Boulder, and surrounding communities
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a design-build firm more expensive than hiring an architect and contractor separately?
Most design-build firms are led by builders who contract design work out — so you’re paying a separate design fee on top of construction. At Arch Design & Build, the designer and the structural engineer are the founders. Architecture and engineering are included in every project at no additional cost.
Do I still get to make design decisions?
Every one of them. Our job is to translate your vision into something buildable and permitted. We will show you options, explain tradeoffs, and let you decide. The VR walkthrough exists specifically so you can see the result and change your mind before anything is built.
What projects are you licensed to take on in Colorado?
Our Class A Contractor License covers unlimited construction, alteration, and demolition of any structure in Colorado. Kitchen remodels, basement finishes, ADUs, full home additions, second-story additions — all within scope.
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Ready to Talk Through Your Project?
Free consultation. Gary or Igor will come to your home, look at the actual structure, and tell you what’s possible and what it’ll cost.
Arch Design & Build
9800 Mount Pyramid Ct, Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112