Multitasking: A word that is taking on a very real meaning for the group of four on the Dining House Team! As the construction for the Dining House is officially off the ground, we’re busy bees, juggling three huge jobs: on-site construction, work on the mock-up, and design tasks! Here are a few of our recent highlights from the large Dining House to-do list!
Progress During “Neckdown” Week
During Neckdown of Spring 2026, when we the Diners made some headway by organizing the Studio’s lumber inventory in barns around Newbern. In January, we completed milling all 28 4″ x 6″ pine timbers from on-site trees. These structural members will be used in the final design as tension columns. The largest pine tree available to the Studio was milled down to six 2″ x 18″s, which will be assembled into a ridge beam composite for the Dining House.
On site, the team erected batter boards and mapped out the foundation trenches. We also provided guidance as a team of contractors rerouted major drainage lines, installed French drains, and ensured proper site water mitigation.
Once the footer was dug and underground utilities were prepared, the team went into action, preparing for the first concrete pour of the project. Over the span of a week and a half, the four of us divided and conquered in building rebar cages that were composed of eight sections, intending to support the concrete block wall and piers for the soon-to-come columns.
Leading up to the pour, we team worked hard preparing the wastewater line and readying the rebar for lowering into the trench. This process looked like unusually hot spring days spent shoveling, unloading, and tamping gravel into the footer.
Moment of truth! Final touches included placing rebar cages, grade pins, and supports into the trench and gathering helpers and tools for the big pour! On the Friday morning of the pour, we were full of nerves and of excitement to get some concrete in the ground. Within an hour, the task was done and there was no going back!
Natural lighting options for the Dining House
Feeling great with a major item checked off the do-to list, the team worked through design and construction details, mainly addressing lighting strategies. An investigation into skylights led us down a path to explore daylighting strategies—gable roofs with and without skylights!
Using a series of skylight options, we explored how specific task lighting would move through the room, from sunrise to sunset, at different times of the year.
The study helped us to uncover the specific function of light in the process. Thomas Patterson, our knowledgeable lighting consultant, listened to us present the many ideas we developed, our presentations aided by models, digital renderings, and 2-D drawings. We discussed overall goals of ambient light, specific task lighting for cooking, and how materials would be highlighted, landing on a design without specific skylight moments. Our design includes a typical gable, large eastern and western curtain walls, and French doors. We are excited about the amount of glowing and indirect light that these choices will allow into the Dining House.
