John Cole Architect

We just built a seasonal family camp in Maine. Constructing a building long-distance is never an easy process for an owner, but having the right architect can turn a potential never-ending headache into a relatively pleasant problem solving experience. We had owned the site, including a few primitive old buildings for decades; it is part of an old kids' camp. We loved the lakefront location, but were ready for something more comfortable. John Cole was our architect and worked with us every step of the way to bring our vision of a practical, well built camp into reality, From the questions he asked and the practical answers he offered to our questions during the initial interview, it was clear that he was the western Maine architect we were looking for. John is a good listener, and his initial design proposal included nearly everything we had indicated. As the design process went on, we tapped John's knowledge of local building contractors as well as other ancillary professionals. As a result. when we had a question, or even more importantly when John thought we were overlooking the need for an outside consultant, he raised the issue and suggested a contact. As we worked our way through the construction process, the value of John's site visits and continuing involvement became clear. Construction questions were resolved quickly and we had time to resolve continuing questions as to interior finishes as the building went up around us. John is a patient man, taking the time needed to make the owner comfortable with the "right" choice. A perfect example is the selection of the color for the kitchen island and cabinets. John made his suggestion early in the process and then revisited the question at least three times. It took us several weeks to come to agreement, but John patiently waited for the time needed for his suggestion to take hold. We are glad that he did. Now that we are all done, we are happy with our comfortable camp. It's handsome and meets our needs. Best of all, the finished building looks as if it grew up out of the site.

We’ve worked with John for the past two years building our dream home on the coast of Maine. We’d never been involved in building a home so the entire process was new to us. We were anxious to find an architect who could sort through our infinite list of wants, and guide us to focus on the most important elements. We selected John because of the approachable, yet elegant designs we saw in his prior work. When we began working with him, we were impressed with his way of listening to what we wanted, as well as guiding us to consider what could work. A significant challenge of our beach front property was dealing with FEMA and zoning regulations. John worked closely with the surveyor and site engineers to meet all of the governmental requirements. Additionally, we were living on the west coast during the design process. John made this work with frequent calls together with quick email drafts of design options. Once the design was substantially finished, John was invaluable in managing the builder bidding process. Then, with us living so far away, John took on the additional role of manager; coordinating various facets of the building process and working closely with the builder. His attention to detail and managerial skills made the building process, from our perspective, painless. John designed a house that perfectly suits our needs. We moved in six months ago and wake up each morning thrilled with our home, both because of the layout and the way it makes us feel like a part of nature. Through John’s design and window placement, we experience the beauty of the ocean and the woods, giving us beautiful vistas at every turn. We love our forever home and highly recommend John as a talented professional who listened to our wishes, designed a home we love, and had a great sense of humor as he guided us through the process. John stayed highly involved from beginning to end and we wholeheartedly recommend him.

We had a great experience working with John Cole. At the recommendation of our builder who knew him from a prior project, we met and hired John to design our vacation home in the Berkshires. Through our conversations and by studying my Houzz ideabooks, John was able to interpret my preferences and incorporate them in to the design of our house. John helped us navigate through the intricate web of town restrictions and zoning laws and design a house that also fit our very challenging landscape. Given our size restrictions, this design is an incredibly efficient use of space that is not only completely functional but also so beautiful that I never want to leave. Through all the stress of building a new home, it was comforting to know that John was always in our corner and our strongest advocate. He worked extremely well with our builder, and together they built us the house of our dreams. We can’t possibly thank him enough!

You have created an absolutely remarkable space for us to call home. It is, by far, the nicest place that we have ever lived in. Thank you. The interesting thing is that it isn't just one design feature.... the kitchen, the entranceway, the timbers, the fireplace- it is they synergy of all of it coming together. M & M.

John Cole has a complete grasp on the aesthetic and textural properties of reclaimed woods. He understands how reclaimed wood products can be used in both utilitarian and purely visual applications. John understands exactly how to work reclaimed woods into a space, blending the material with different modern aesthetic elements to achieve various desired levels of rusticity, character, and nostalgia for previously-used spaces. Recently, John incorporated a mixture of Longleaf Lumber's reclaimed red and white oak wood for flooring, beam wraps, and stair parts, melding them seamlessly into a Maine lakeside home. His choice to use a mixture of red and white oaks - as opposed to the more traditional single-species approach - created a space that suggested a more relaxed and authentic relationship with the natural world outside the building. The reclaimed oaks carried from the first floor, up the staircase, and into the above spaces. It was a job well done, and one that will last.

We are so very fortunate to have found John Cole to design our summer/retirement home in midcoast Maine. The new structure is to replace a seasonal cottage that's been in the family for nearly 45 years, and we were concerned that an architect would not hesitate to demolish memories along with the old house in order to express his own vision. John quickly demonstrated this would not be the case. He visited us on-site and after walking the property, learning its history, and asking some questions, he said little at first. Rather, he listened carefully. This attentiveness and sensitivity perfectly complemented his expertise and decades of experience to ultimately produce a design that evokes the property’s past even as it meets our rather demanding needs for the future. Once John began to speak to these needs and produce design schemes, he did so with a combination of imagination and precision that we appreciate very much. He has been able maximize our small lot’s potential by using space efficiently yet creatively. He also is very responsive. While it was clear that he had other projects in progress, he was in regular communication and remained attentive to our input as refinements were made and deadlines approached. He met those deadlines faithfully, frequently well in advance. We are looking forward to continuing our productive and thoroughly enjoyable relationship with John Cole, and highly recommend that you begin yours.

We couldn’t be more pleased with our decision to have John Cole design our “dream house”! We started the journey with John well over 10 years ago, and with our dreams now becoming reality, we love every aspect of our home. We bought an existing camp on an island on Lake Winnipesaukee with the intention to rebuild at some point in the future. John’s first trip up there we sat and talked about our likes and dislikes, what kind of spaces we wanted, size, budget, and drove around by boat looking at other camps and designs. I was amazed by the first sketches John produced, they captured everything we wanted (including some whimsical elements), and had we not had two children heading off to college, we would have started construction immediately! As time went on, the shoreline regulations were rewritten and revised several times, and we were now constrained by not only the camp’s original size but also the original footprint. I had thought we might need to give up many of the unique elements John had first designed, but we liked his ‘second’ version just has much as the first. Because the regulations were so new, John worked directly with the teams at both the State and Town to ensure all the rules were being interpreted correctly and incorporated in the redesigned house. The island location presented some unique logistical and construction challenges, and John worked with our contractor to push the conventional thinking with new building materials and techniques. John fostered an excellent partnership throughout the construction process with frequent site visits, inviting input from all parties, and addressing any issues that came up along the way. He is masterful at getting everyone in agreement through his use of facts, opinions, gentle prodding, and humor. Even though there is still much to be done, we will be sitting in the house and look at each other and say “wow, this is even more spectacular than we imagined!”. Thank you John!

As an artist as well as an architect, John Cole superbly blended these two crafts to design our dream vacation/retirement home in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts. John's skill as a keen listener picked up on the nuances of our conversations and executed our ideas to the finest details. I am reminded of perhaps the highest compliment that I could ever pay John each time we arrive at our new home, when without exception, my wife looks at me and says. . . "I would not do a thing differently". . . It seems to me that this kind of statement reflects the pinnacle of the architect's craft.

We've worked with John on the design and construction of a cottage and a home over the past 6 years, and could not be more pleased with both the product of those efforts and the working relationship with John that produced them. He rapidly developed an appreciation for our tastes and reflected that understanding in all of his work for us. He had a clear sense of and commitment to the architectural style we chose, and executed all our practical needs and requests in a manner which maintained the overall coherence and beauty of the homes he designed for us. He showed immense patience and flexibility as our needs and budgets evolved, and didn't hesitate to refer us to specialists in areas of particular concern to us (lighting design, kitchen design). He worked closely with our builder in a a way that found the right balance between aesthetics/design, and the practical realities of budgets and building in an exposed Maine seaside site. I would highly recommend John to anyone looking to create a home which combines beauty, functionality, budgetary pragmatics. He was a delight to work with, and we will be reminded of his efforts on our behalf as we enjoy the homes he created for us.

John Cole has been a 5-star-plus architect for me on two homes - one in Maine and one in CT, both ocean front. He absolutely gets my highest recommendation, and I am known for being a perfectionist and not particularly easy to deal with. On both homes, one that was designed from scratch, the other that was a full gut/renovation, he not only did incredible design work, but also worked hand in hand throughout the construction with my lead contractor on each home. In both cases, I absolutely LOVED the homes when they were done. Would not change one thing. And that's quite a statement. John always delivers the perfect balance of candor and honesty via a delightfully soft spoken yet laser-like directness. He will not let you make a mistake, no matter how blindly determined you are to do so. Combine all of this with the highest levels of an architect's skill, from one who has worked at the top of his craft all over the world, and you have one heck of a value proposition. John always delivers. If you want the best architect, who delivers an incredible result, and who does so on time and on budget, then go with John. Truly, you cannot find someone better.

As a builder, I was hired by customers of John Cole on two occasions to build new homes. Over the years I have had a chance to work with a lot of architects and I can honestly say that John was the most enjoyable to work with. He has a great sense of design and use of scale. All aspects of the construction process are handled as a team -builder/architect/owner. This is important so everyone feels as though they play a part in the design and construction. In any project there are a number of things that come up that need to be worked out. John does a great job to work through everything with an open mind and accept feedback from all parties. Ultimately, the creativeness in design and space is what makes John Cole an excellent architect.

We have been working with John for over a year now as we build a summer cottage on property we own in Maine. John has been a partner to us throughout the entire process, from first helping us to envision the type of home we'd want to build, to making it real through detailed plans and contractor selection, through to helping to oversee all details of the actual construction and finishing. Throughout it all, John has helped us to bring our ideas to life while making them better and more refined through his experience and talent. We trust his taste, his understanding of the small details that will make the house special, his use of light and space and finishes. He is thoughtful and detailed and works to make our ideas the absolute best they can be, bringing suggestions and new ways of thinking without losing sight of what we wanted to achieve in the first place. He has also been invaluable in helping to oversee the work with our contractor, making frequent on site visits and reporting to us in detail on next steps. The entire process has benefited from our partnership with John and we believe that we will really have the house of our dreams as we finish this process in the next two months.