Interior designer in Palm Beach, Florida

The Architectural Commission, known as ARCOM and created in 1970, reviews new construction, landscaping and changes to existing structures visible from public rights-of-way, and its attention reaches details such as windows, gates, columns and pool edging. The Landmarks Preservation Commission, established under the town's 1979 preservation ordinance, reviews alterations to designated landmarks and issues Certificates of Appropriateness. Variances, special exceptions and site plan reviews go to the Town Council.

The town's project designation matrix sorts exterior items, from windows, doors and awnings to mechanical equipment, fences, landscape lighting and signage, into commission, chair or staff review, and some staff-level items need a written waiver from the adjacent neighbor. Interior layouts and finishes are not on that list. We identify early which interior decisions would show outside, such as a changed window, a new awning or a pergola, so the architect can carry them into the submission.

The Estate Section, south of Worth Avenue toward Sloan's Curve, holds many of the island's largest properties, some running from the ocean to the lake, with Mediterranean Revival and other early 20th-century houses among them. For these we plan interiors that keep what survives, such as original tile, plaster, pecky cypress and millwork, and fit new kitchens, baths, lighting and custom furniture to the architecture.

The North End is quieter and more residential, with estates alongside 1950s houses on streets off North Lake Way, several of them recently renovated and resold. Mid-century houses call for a different approach: rooms opened to the pool and garden, kitchens and baths rebuilt, and materials that suit the period. In town, between the North End and Worth Avenue, smaller houses on dry lots sit within walking distance of the shops, and there we focus on storage, built-ins and plans that make compact rooms work harder.

South of Sloan's Curve, whose buildings date from around 1980, the South End is mostly condominium buildings along South Ocean Boulevard, and more condominiums and cooperatives sit in town near Worth Avenue. Renovations in these residences are largely interior: new plans, kitchens and baths within fixed plumbing, sound-rated flooring, lighting and millwork, with each association's approvals, insurance requirements and elevator bookings built into the schedule.

The season sets the calendar. From November 1 through April 30 the town allows no construction on Saturdays, Sundays, town holidays or the days before and after Thanksgiving, stops all work from December 24 through January 1, and prohibits demolition of structures; interior demolition is allowed only when it and the debris removal are finished within three days. We time demolition and noisy work for the off-season and use the winter for design, approvals and fabrication. Oceanfront buildings also follow the town's sea turtle lighting rule from March 1 to October 31.

Worth Avenue runs four blocks from the lake to the ocean, and its vias, Via Mizner and Via Parigi among them, lead off the street into courtyards of shops, offices and apartments. The avenue has its own zoning district, C-WA, where street-facing storefront and window changes appear on the town's design review matrix along with awnings, signage and even the furnishings for outdoor seating. The merchants' Worth Avenue Association, formed in 1938, keeps its own appearance guidelines.

Our commercial work here covers boutiques, galleries, restaurants and offices on Worth Avenue and along Royal Poinciana Way, the town's original main street. Concept renderings come first, for the landlord and for review, followed by finish, lighting and millwork documents for the licensed contractor. Construction in the C-WA district follows its own seasonal hours, and we build them into the schedule.