The hotel & Spa Del Monte Lodge wanted to refresh their tastefully modest building in the historic village setting of Pittsford New York with a new porte-cochere that conveyed the elegance of the hotel and spa while harkening to the contextual design elements of the area. Andrew Van Roo the Director of Design & Construction for Del Monte Group and his team thought the best way to address the main entrance, and specifically the space that leads directly into the lobby and reception desk area, was with a timeless timber frame design.
The building itself is gracefully understated featuring a mostly neutral color palate with details that are relatively subdued. To accentuate the existing aesthetic of the building the Del Monte Group’s design team thought there was an opportunity to insert a new structural design element into the overall hotel & spa complex to make an impactful statement in the main entry area that would give the best initial impression when a guest first arrives.
The hotel itself is situated in the village of Pittsford New York on the Erie Canal, surrounded by historic timber frame warehouses and barns which extensively utilize natural materials in their design. Because of this, the guiding concept behind the Del Monte porte-cochere project was to pick up on some of those elements and develop a car port and entry that was completely modern but evoked those related timber components from the surrounding area.
With this core concept in mind, the design team for Del Monte Group began to form a design program around what the project would look like and how it would function. Using a stacked beam approach with traditional design forms to allow for a span of nearly forty feet of solid timber, the now completed porte-cochere successfully nods to the aesthetic of the area while also providing a grand contemporary entrance to the hotel & spa.
“From the time we received schematic drawings, all the way through design development and construction, the process was enjoyable and as smooth as possible, which is challenging in the construction industry,” said Andrew Van Roo Director of Design & Construction for Del Monte Group. “The process was fantastic. From an architectural perspective it was very easy to collaborate with New Energy Works, especially when it came to developing ideas, sharing drawings, and coordinating the construction documents. The actual execution of the project was seamless.”
