Oriel
Oriel is a Chicago architecture studio for homes, additions, storefronts and workplaces, drawing every project by hand from first sketch to final permit since 2008.
Start a project
4.9 from 86 clients
Licensed in Illinois
Architecture, since 2008
We are Maya and Ken, two architects on Fulton Market. We draw homes, storefronts and workplaces for daylight, winters and real budgets.
For eighteen years we have worked from the same loft, with more than 140 projects built across the city and the near suburbs, from a back porch to a forty-unit loft conversion. One of the two of us draws every project, and Ken is on site for every pour.
Maya Novak Principal, homes and renovations
Ken Takeda Principal, commercial work
Homes, storefronts and workplaces for the way Chicago actually lives. Drawn on Fulton Market. Built across the city.
Every lot has a plan in it.
Homes & additions.
(01)
New homes and coach houses
Rear and second-story additions
Basements dug out and finished
Permit drawings for back porches
Learn more
Rehabs & conversions.
(02)
Gut rehabs of greystones and two-flats
Lofts and warehouse conversions
Kitchens, stairs and new light wells
Learn more
Commercial.
(03)
Restaurants, cafés and storefronts
Offices and tenant build-outs
Small multifamily, up to 12 units
Learn more
Four of the 140 we have built. Old buildings, mostly. A few new ones.
Most of our work is in buildings older than 1920: greystones, two-flats, workers' cottages and the porches behind them.
Hoyne Avenue greystone
2024
Bucktown, gut rehab, 4,200 sq ft
An 1891 two-flat turned back into one family home, with the limestone front restored and a light well cut through the middle.
Roscoe Village coach house
2025
Roscoe Village, new build, 780 sq ft
A two-story coach house behind a 1905 frame house: a studio below, a bedroom above, a garden between.
Randolph Street bakery
2023
West Loop, storefront, 2,600 sq ft
A storefront, an open kitchen and a 40-seat café in a 1920s brick warehouse.
Evanston lake house
2025
Evanston, new home, 3,800 sq ft
A new home on a narrow lakefront lot, every main room turned toward the water.
Greystones
Two-flats
Coach houses
Bungalows
Lofts
Storefronts
Workplaces
Restaurants
18
years in the same loft on Fulton Market
140
projects built, and counting
4.9
stars from 86 clients
96
percent of permit sets approved on the first submission
From a walk around the lot to the last inspection. Four steps, one architect the whole way.
Every fee is fixed and in writing before we start each step. You can stop after any of them and keep the drawings.
01
A walk around the site
A free first meeting at your house, lot or storefront, about an hour. We listen, measure a little and tell you honestly whether you need us.
02
What the lot allows
Zoning, a survey, two or three ways the project could go and a first budget, in a feasibility study from $2,400.
03
Drawings and the permit
We design it with you, seal the drawings, submit them to the city and answer the plan reviewer until the permit is issued.
04
On site every week
We bid it to three contractors we trust, or work with yours, visit the site every week and sign off every payment.
Fees for 2026
What it costs, in writing before we start.
Small projects are a fixed fee. New homes and large renovations are a share of the construction cost, capped in your agreement. The first meeting is always free.
Book a first meeting
First meeting at your site
About an hour, anywhere we work
Free
Feasibility study
Zoning, survey, options and a first budget
from $2,400
Back porch or deck permit drawings
Sealed and submitted
from $3,800
Restaurants, storefronts and build-outs
Design, permit and construction visits
from $9,500
Additions and second stories
Design, permit and construction visits
from $18,000
Gut rehabs of greystones and two-flats
Design, permit and construction visits
from $22,000
New homes and coach houses
10% to 15% of construction cost
from $65,000
Consults and second opinions
Billed by the quarter hour
$195/hr
Rated 4.9 by 86 clients. Here are three of them.
4.9 average
They found us a third bedroom in a house we were about to sell. We stayed, and we have never been happier in it.
Priya, Lincoln Square
Ken was at every pour. The bakery opened two weeks early and under the number.
Luis, West Loop
Our permit came back on the first try. Our contractor said that never happens.
Dana and Mike, Oak Park
What people ask before they call.
Something else? Call or text the studio at (312) 555-0168. An architect answers.
What does an architect cost?
A feasibility study starts at $2,400, and small projects are a fixed fee. New homes and large renovations run 10% to 15% of construction cost, capped in writing before we start.
Do I need an architect for a permit in Chicago?
For most work, yes: anything structural, an addition, a new porch or a change of use needs drawings sealed by a licensed architect. We seal them, submit them and answer the plan reviewer.
How long does it take?
A renovation is usually three to five months of design, then six to twelve weeks for the permit. We give you the schedule with the fee, and update it every month.
Can you work with my contractor?
Gladly. Or we bid the drawings to three builders we have worked with for years and walk you through the numbers line by line.
Do you work outside the city?
Yes, across the near suburbs: Evanston, Oak Park, Wilmette, Skokie, Forest Park and La Grange. Further out, ask us.
Inquiries
Tell us about the lot.
A few lines and an address is plenty. One of us will call you within two working days to set up a free first meeting at the site.
Call or text (312) 555-0168
studio@orielarchitects.com
1132 W Fulton Market, Suite 3, Chicago, IL 60607
Start a project
Send it to the studio