Steve is wonderful. He was the third architect I hired to help me redesign a complete gut rehab of…read more3 story plus basement SFH. Having already failed to get a workable design twice, working with Steve was so easy. During our first meeting his off-the-top-of-head ideas were both logical and architectually appropriate. His design drawings were even better. And nothing like either of the previous designs! Steve worked closely with the City of Chicago to make sure that our plans met code. I credit his knowledge of CofC building codes to place new dormers, not where I suggested but where they would still give me the required space and be approved by the City. Plus, they provide a better view! Everytime I think 'oh, no, I didn't think of . . .' I check the plans and Steve did think of that! Steve is quick to understand what you want/need, is responsive to questions, and explains the whys and hows. His plans are thorough, detailed, thoughtful. The kitchen space he created for us without an addition is alone worth 5 stars. Now that he is finished with the heavy lifting on my project talk to him about yours

Steve did a great job on designing our addition. He was easy to communicate with and listened to…read moreour needs. He had some great ideas and was able to get exactly what we wanted while still working within our budget. The drawings were thorough, which reduced confusion with the contractor and made the permit process very quick. Would definately recommend.

Rick and his team do excellent work. We remodeled three bathrooms and they do a great job managing…read morethe project on time and on budget. What was most impressive was the space that Rick found that was not being utilized in our 100+ year old home. It was a small amount of space, but wow, what a difference incorporating that made. A fresh approach and great eye for design created an amazing master suite.

We hired Stonecrest for a major renovation to our home. They damaged our home, endangered our…read morefamily with toxic fumes, the new section of the basement that they put in leaked in 17 places when they "finished" that phase of our home, the GC was verbally abusive and they walked off our job when he had his final meltdown. They were "up charging" us throughout the job. Our experience with this company was a total nightmare not to mention extraordinarily costly. We have since met others that have had similar terrible experiences. I'm posting this as a public service.

Our project was to completely remodel the kitchen of our Downers Grove house. We shopped around…read morequite a bit across the well established builders in the suburbs of Chicagoland area. We decided to go with Normandy Builders and we couldnt have been happier with the overall experience - from design to completion and post completion support! Our designer, Bryan Brisky, was one of the reasons my wife leaned towards Normandy, she felt very comfortable with the relationship she built and the straight forward and well established grounding the designer brought in to our project. The overall vision my wife had for the project was quite different and part of creativity was successful because of the insight Bryan provided. He not only listened to what my wife wanted, but also provided fiscally responsible decision points that helped us ensure we didnt go over/above what we should spend (bang for buck). Once the project kicked off, one of the best things that happened to us was we were assigned Chris Tomko. He truly was the most amazing person outside of our designer from Normandy that made the process completely seamless. Case in point, we had a pre-planned vacation for a week and Chris was checking in daily with the progress of our project as he normally did but was very extra involved to ensure we werent nervous all while construciton was ongoing during our vacation. There were several timelines within our project that were hit right on the time as planned, if not earlier, all while supply issues happened - Normandy has a very good reputation and flex with their vendors so it was good to get proper results even when things didnt go well since they made things right. Example, some of our cabinetry wasnt fully perfect, minor flaws but they re-ordered and replaced them. Our project entailed several plumbing, electrical, drywall, etc. milestones and Normandy worked seamlessly with the village permit department and pre-post inspection approvals. During construction there were no problems, at all, Normady fixed any issues as needed that impacted our existing house if anything happened. Example, we had a minor drywall scrape and they fixed it. Of course, we paid as part of our fees the use of air filters, coverings for furniture, close out of rooms so dust doesnt go to those rooms, etc but we definately GOT WHAT WE PAID FOR in the end. My project also included adding a new sub-panel in my basement for electricity for my higher grade appliances, new coffee station with built in cabinetry, bigger exaust output and input for air, electric car supply to my garage via basement. Normandy continues to ensure quality is of utmost improtance - backed by 5 years of warranty for workmanship. I had them stop by to re-caulk the kitchen area and they are very good at just standing behind their work. Yes, it was a bit more than other builders but i was happy parting away with a small percentage extra because it turned out to be the best way to put my money to work. Had I gone with other bigger builders or smaller ones, I am not sure if I would be given attention AFTER THE PROJECT WAS COMPLETED! If you need any further questions answered, feel free to connect with me on google (zoobearz@gmail.com) and would love to help you make the decision. My official name is Mohammed Khan from Downers Grove if you want to reference me so they know you decided based on my review and feedback! Overall our project was over ~120K ish in cost, appliances were seperate via ABT.

Normandy has dishonest and incompetent people at all levels. If I could give negative stars,…read moreNormandy would be the company. Initial timeline from Normandy, written in the contract, was 9 months. After 5 months, Normandy could not produce accurate architectural drawings - they initially estimated drawings to be complete in 4-6 weeks. Basic items like location of existing windows, elevation labels, and incorrectly placing 2nd floor bathroom layout on 1st floor, are a few examples of Normandy's incompetence. Normandy reported having requested a building permit, until I asked for confirmation, then Normandy admitted the request for a permit was not made (one of many lies). When issues were escalated, each next "manager" blamed the previous person's incompetence. After 5 months, there was not one person that could answer basic questions from Normandy's drawings (Danny, Leslie, and Ashely are equally incompetent). Troy Pavelka (Normandy's Vice President) is the most dishonest and incompetent of the group. Troy's response to every issue was to ask for more money and time. When I insisted Normandy adhere to the contract budget, timeline, and statement of work, Troy requested to cancel the contract. Only a dishonest company like Normandy would cancel a contract they wrote. I should not have ignored all the other reviews of Normandy showing the pattern of dishonesty and incompetence.

What a tremendous resource for all aspects of construction and design. So incredibly knowledgable…read more You can't go wrong working with Steve Flint and his team. Four stars!

Steve Flint and his team designed our new family room and dining room and we couldn't be happier!…read moreIt looks beautiful! He is very professional, hands-on, open-minded, timely and friendly. It was a pleasure.

We hired Richard Chuk of Richlind Architects to design our deck and provide plans for permit…read more Richlind did a great job. Richard provided us with several design ideas, from simple to complex. He worked closely with us to ensure that we were happy with the final design and that it would meet our budget. He visited the site, took comprehensive notes and planned a deck that would work well in the allotted space. Once we selected a design, Richard drew up plans, which were accepted by the village for permit with no hitches. In addition to the plans, Richard did extensive research for building materials and made several recommendations. All in all the experience was excellent, the deck was built and everything passed final inspection. I found Rich's approach professional and thorough, and his designs were creative yet functional.

We fell into a family owned 75 year old house after my husband's great uncle passed away and…read morecouldn't pass up the good deal. COULD do without the pink kitchen and yellow and black bathroom tiles. Aesthetics aside, there were some serious layout issues with the house that made it seem smaller than it actually was. Before just hiring a general contractor, we talked to Jereme to see if he had some design ideas that would be more interesting than just "knock down some walls and put new drywall up." Jereme worked really hard to keep within budget while still adding some fun touches that everyone comments on, like a reclaimed wood soffit that defines the kitchen area. He also used every square inch of the home to make sure we didn't have any wasted spaces. We used barn doors to make old bathrooms feel bigger and built ins to make the most of slanted attic walls. Overall, everything was on time and any extras were clearly laid out. Communication over email was great and he was very organized as we went along with the to do list and keeping all of the contractors on task. I would highly recommend Design Insight and will definitely use them again if we buy another house.

As a dedicated Yelp fan, we scoured the reviews to find an architect to renovate our 1950's ranch…read morehome. Our main goals were an open floor plan and a larger kitchen. We got so much more! A gorgeous, spacious, cook's kitchen, open floor plan, open curved staircase to basement, mud room and outdoor BBQ station. Jereme is a creative architect with a keen eye for details...not to mention a great, easy-going guy! We had a couple of initial meetings to discuss our wants and needs and then Jereme dove into the design and ultimately presented a few design concepts. We quickly zeroed in on the one that seemed best and collectively tweaked the design and components to best suit our needs. Jereme hired the construction crew and personally directed and supervised their work. He was on the site every day and in frequent contact with us. The end result is FABULOUS and more than we hoped for!! Jereme was great to work with. Very responsive to all of our questions, concerns and ideas...and he never showed any ego. He was also extremely budget conscious and economical. The project took longer than quoted, but the end result is a 10!! Highly recommended!!!

Working with Thomas & his team was a pleasure. Outside of the box thinking. Quick to respond…read more Rational approach. All that you need in an architect, you'll find with Thomas Architects.

I have worked with Thom on several projects. Thom is a very passionate, determined architect who…read moreworks extremely hard to make sure his client is excited about the design. My wife and I couldn't be happier with our newly remodeled house he designed.

I have worked with Greg Geslicki at OCGG architects for several years and he is by far the best…read morearchitect that I have every have every worked with. We remodeled our house after buying it as a foreclosure and there are no words to describe how wonderful and vital to our project he was. He worked from the original drawings to the final detail with wonderful ideas and a dedication to our desires and the house. He met with us during the project and was absolutely great in bringing our contractor back to reality. Without him our project would have been much more difficult than it was. If we have further needs we would only work with him.