SITE SELECTION: ARCHITECT OR OWNER

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Every Architect has different formula in choosing a site for their proposed projects. This will depend on the type of structure to be built. Say, for residential buildings, if you may notice, Architects can produce a design even in a difficult location. It may be because most residential sites are already given by the owner and the Architect has no choice but to set-up a design on that given location. But whatever type of terrain it is, a residential type building can easily be designed to blend in. However, sites with irregular topography will be too difficult to consider for other type of structures like commercial or institutional buildings and alike. It can add tremendous impact to the construction cost and time to build.

Having said all that, it is important to consider at first the type or usage of the structure in choosing a site. Other factors to consider also are the local zoning, the accessibility, infrastructure availability and determining the type of adjacent existing establishments. 

Though Architects has their own way of doing site analysis, the owner has always the final say. Some people have their own way or belief in choosing a location for their building and this must be respected. This include the belief in Feng Shui, family tradition and etc.

Speaking of belief, I came across the post by Arch. Ernesto Zarate regarding some beliefs of other people in choosing a lot to build on and I feel, it worth sharing to all of you.

This is what he say (non-edited)...

He entitled it as "CHOOSING THE LOT ON WHICH TO BUILD Beliefs from around the world"

AMONG BUILDING PROFESSIONALS, choosing the lot on which to build is the most important of all possible considerations. Ask any realtor worth his salt what the three basic qualities of a good piece of real estate are and he will tell you: “Location, location and location.”

Throughout the world, a lot of weight has been placed on the choice of lot where a house is to be built. For Hawaiians, they consider the location of the new home just as important as the house itself. In Russia, because of the cold climate, this is a prime consideration. Although Feng Shui was first used to determine the best position for burial sites, other spaces, including building sites, were later included.

In other words, the first concern of builders around the world is selecting the proper site. It had to be clean; that is, not in the possession of mythical beings who might object to a house being erected where they reside. For this purpose, various forms of divination are practiced by our countrymen who still follow the beliefs dictated on them by the old folks in the choice of a building site. These rituals vary from region to region. These are discussed at length in the book by the writer--“More Filipino Building Beliefs.” 

In the Russian village of Krasnoiarka, ritual divinations are held overnight, this time with the use of bread and water. Here is how it is performed: late at night a cup with water is put on the chosen place with a piece of bread either next to it or over it. If by morning the “offerings” are untouched or remain as they were the night before, the place is considered good. But if the bread is found to have been scattered about and the water spilled, the “spirit owner” is said to have refused permission for the use of the place.

Aside from pleasing the spirits who may possess an intended spot, builders also look for places that are considered lucky, such as where coins are found or along a road where houses whose inhabitants are happy, stand.

Places where some misfortune has occurred--murder, suicide, land purchased with stolen money–are avoided, in the belief that the lot absorbs these bad vibrations and the ill luck may be transferred to the new owners. And the site selection cannot be made by just anyone, lest his actions prejudice the destiny of the eventual owner. 

A Hawaiian, for example, usually seeks the advice of a diviner (kikokilo) in the selection of a place on which to build a house, because there are many beliefs and signs to be considered.

Observing curious occurrences could also determine unlucky (in the sacred sense) locations of a house: anxious behavior of sheep and horses, cattle plague, failure in the raising of certain stock animals, decrease in their milk yield, cattle wanderlust, or even just their slow growth. Other negative signs include the repetitive incidence of personal problems among family members, poor health, and the lack of success in ordinary endeavors, old maid daughters, no children born (or only females are born) into the family, as well as the occurrence of natural disasters like fires.

The choice of a lot has also to satisfy practical requirements. For instance, even if Indonesians believe that choosing a lot that is facing north would cause the owner to fail to acquire riches, this could also be taken to mean that a northern frontage for a house is more inauspicious than other orientations. In many Russians villages, it will be observed that the old houses are often planned with the wind direction and the sun rotation taken into consideration instead of facing a street, which would be the logical manner.

In Feng Shui, harmony and balance are the two most important factors, recognizing the fact that, even just the excavation of foundations is considered a violation of natural law that has to be corrected or atoned for through other means.

My father was a realtor, a real good one, I might proudly add. He supported all seven of his sons and daughters through college by means of his chosen profession. He was of the firm belief that each particular lot has its own peculiar qualities waiting for its particular owner. “Kurso-kursunada lang yan...” (to each his own choice) he would always say.

His golden advice to me when my wife and I were scouting around for a piece of real estate to buy was simple: “Once you’ve found a lot that fits your requirements (near a good school, church, hospital, and/or market; regular and efficient transportation; pleasant neighborhood; ample water supply, etc.)—before you make your down payment, visit the site one last time... this time during the worst conditions possible—while a Signal No. 3 typhoon is raging, at the height of a heavy downpour, when traffic is heaviest, at three in the morning, etc. If the chosen lot can still stand up to your discriminating requisites despite all these dire conditions, go ahead and buy it.”

I always impart the same advice to my clients and those who heeded it never failed to thank me for it.

-Ernesto Zarate, FPIA