Turning a dream into reality
The Modern Prairie House is comprised of a 325 m² main residence, a large garage and an additional guest house located in heart of Sonoma Wine Country, California. It took Chad Overway, the designer, builder, and homeowner on the project, two years to transform the concept for his forever home into a reality.
Chad Overway spent a large portion of his professional career developing commercial projects for the hospitality industry. He holds a passion for residential development driving the process from beginning to end while being able to see the vision come to life.
As an owner of the Schiff house designed by Richard Neutra, constructed in 1938, Chad has an affinity for European modern architecture. He spent years refurbishing the masterpiece back to its original condition after purchasing the property in the early 90s.
The layout of the Modern Prairie House was inspired by the living spaces from residences owned by the Overways throughout the years. Organization of the space took shape through the structural design with dramatic clear spans supported by a minimalistic colonnade. Few walls divide the wide-open public spaces from the private zones of the house. Jeppe Larsen, a Danish structural engineer came up with the innovative framing plan. Absent of any traditional sheer walls, the house is supported by 4’-5’ deep pier footings with a 2’ layer of concrete wrapped around the vertical support columns.
The basic skeleton structure, which took 1.5 months to erect, is comprised of materials typically seen on commercial buildings, including structural steel framing, steel deck and HVAC air handlers.
