Project Overview

Saray Design Group provided full architectural and engineering services for a comprehensive multi-level interior remodel of the Nemeh Residence in Oak Brook, Illinois. The project addressed a wide range of improvements across the basement, main level, and upper floors, transforming an established home into a modernized, open, and highly functional living space.

Following a detailed walkthrough with the client, SDG developed a revised scope that captured the homeowner’s vision across every level of the residence, from a full basement gut renovation to master bathroom redesign, kitchen expansion, and entry modernization.

The Challenge

The project required careful coordination across multiple interconnected scopes spanning all three levels of the home. Key challenges included structural analysis for a kitchen footprint expansion, removal of load-bearing elements to open the kitchen to the family room, conversion of arched door openings to a modern square profile throughout the foyer, and reconfiguring circulation paths at both the garage entry and upper foyer. Balancing code compliance, structural integrity, and the client’s aesthetic goals across a wide-ranging scope demanded close collaboration between SDG’s architecture and engineering team.

Our Approach

• Performed structural analysis to support kitchen footprint expansion and coordinated removal of the wall between the kitchen and family room, creating a continuous open-plan living space

• Designed a fully renovated basement, including demolition of existing kitchen, steam room, sauna, and Jacuzzi to reclaim and repurpose usable square footage

• Replaced existing water heater with an upgraded unit as part of the basement mechanical scope

• Converted all arched door openings in the foyer (approximately five throughout all floors) to a clean square profile for a modernized entry aesthetic

• Reconfigured foyer and entry level circulation, including closing the basement foyer opening, installing a large upstairs foyer window for natural light, and enlarging the closet by eliminating the back stair door

• Designed new garage entries at the existing laundry room, with a reconfigured mudroom and closed partition at the garage stair for improved flow

• Redesigned the master bathroom with a single double-door entrance, streamlined closet access, a continuous window unit connecting existing openings, and a new upstairs laundry closet within the existing bedroom

• Adjusted railing heights throughout to meet code-compliant 36-inch minimums

• Removed shelving and cabinetry from the entry-level alcove to maximize openness and sight lines

• Widened the bay window opening between the living room and sunroom for a more expansive, light-filled feel

• Prepared a full signed and sealed permit drawing set (architectural, structural, MEP) and coordinated building permit application and review with the Village of Oak Brook

Deliverables

• Full architectural and structural permit drawing set, signed and sealed

• MEP drawings for all affected systems

• Structural analysis report for kitchen expansion and wall removal

• Basement demolition and renovation drawings

• Master bathroom redesign and upstairs laundry addition drawings

• Foyer, entry, and circulation reconfiguration drawings

• Building permit application and review coordination with the Village of Oak Brook

• Site visits as required to support permit drawings and construction detailing