Level 2 – Whole Site Design
What is a Level 2 – Whole Site Design?
A Level 2 – Whole Site Design is a master plan for your entire property, enterprise or project that visually maps how all of the pieces integrate with and feed one another to realize your desired quality of life in that place. It is your vision, values and desired quality of life mapped onto your landscape.
Level 2’s illustrate the whole by mapping relationships, distances, patterns of use, and management practices between different elements (existing and proposed) on your property, allowing you to “see” how all of the pieces will integrate and support one another.
A Level 2 – Whole Site Design acts as a dynamic roadmap for implementing the systems that create a resilient homestead. It is a tool to focus your energy, time and resources on doing the next most impactful thing on the road to realizing your vision for your land and quality of life.
Level 2 – Whole Site Designs are for land owners and home owners seeking an actionable plan to create a resilient, productive and beautiful land base that increases self-reliance and freedom.
A Whole Site Design refines and integrates your big picture vision with the landscape’s inherent characteristics, yielding a clear plan of what to do and in which order to do it that maximizes the efficacy of limited time, energy and resources.
Every piece of land has an “unfair advantage” – something it can do innately well. A Whole Site Design identifies the inherent leverage points where appropriate interventions can create significant and compounding returns in time, money and energy saved as well as increased beauty, enhanced function, production and security.
Who is a Level 2 – Whole Site Design for?
If you are ready to start transforming your landscape into your Garden of Eden, a Level 2 – Whole Site Design is for you.
What is included in a Level 2 – Whole Site Design?
- Site visit by both designers, typically 1-2 days in duration.
- Detailed Level 2 – Whole Site Design Report including:
- Everything listed in the L1 – Site Assessment Report.
- Design write-ups for all proposed elements, organized in the following sections (Water, Access, Structures, Living Systems, Boundaries, Energy, Economy and Community) according to primary design function:
- Water:
- Providing Hydration: passive and active water harvesting elements (from earthworks to water tanks and everything in between), open water bodies.
- Moving Things: erosion control structures, water elements that move wastes and nutrients.
- Moderating Climate: systems using water to move heat.
- Re-Creation: water elements for enjoyment, beauty and relaxation.
- Access: Patterned / retrofitted to improve site hydrology.
- Wheeled Access: vehicle access patterning based on site hydrology, maintenance and function. Hardscapes to low-standard.
- Foot Access: foot path access for humans and animals (livestock and wild). Hardscapes, softscapes, bioscapes.
- Shelter & Structures: siting, orientation, co-location with other elements informed by Water and Access patterns. Also includes recommendations for construction or retrofit methodologies that are climate and site-specific.
- Shelters/Structures For People: individual and family homes, communal gathering spaces.
- Shelter/Structures For Things: equipment and tool storage, specific storage elements.
- Shelters/Structures For Plants & Animals: livestock shelters (mobile, semi-permanent and permanent), greenhouses, shadehouses etc.
- Living Systems: Specific elements to enhance Soil Building & Fertility, Food Production, Biological Erosion Control, Privacy Screens, Shade Plantings, and Forestry.
- Soil Building & Fertility: Livestock, Nutrient Cycling, Nurse Plantings, Cover Crops / Green Manures.
- Food Production: Gardens, Orchards, Agroforestry Systems, Livestock (including aquaculture), Wild Tending.
- Fuel & Fiber Production (if applicable)
- Erosion Control: Biological Erosion Control elements.
- Forestry: Privacy Screens, Shade Plantings
- Propagation: Climate-appropriate plant and tree propagation.
- Boundaries: Recommended elements for
- Animal Confinement / Exclusion: Context-specific fencing systems.
- Security & Privacy: Boundaries to enhance security and privacy as desired.
- Energetic & Spiritual: Sacred places, homes for wildlife etc.
- Legal
- Energy: Recommended elements for
- Moving Heat: Cooking, Space Cooling & Heating, Water Heating.
- Moving Things: Moving Water, Energy Generation (electrostatic, mechanical), Moving Wastes & Nutrients.
- Moving Electricity: efficient electrical systems (wiring, appliances, tools, communications, entertainment etc).
- Economy: Recommendations for systems that create wealth and help to transact value at the intersection of your passions and skill set, the inherent advantages of your landscape, affordability / sustainability and market demand.
- Community: Recommendations for strengthening bonds with local community, creating the kind of community that is required to realize your desired quality of life.
- Water:
- Hi-resolution photographic scale basemap of the property, with all design layers as specified above, and relevant call-outs.
- Printed copy of the report and 11×17 basemaps (larger, poster-sized .jpeg or PDF files of the basemap and any design layers available upon request).
- Access to all digital files.
- Virtual / in-person presentation of the report upon receipt of the deliverables (in-person presentation will necessitate additional travel expenses).
View A Sample L2 – Whole Site Design Report HERE.
How much does a Level 2 – Whole Site Design cost?
$10,000 – $12,000 + travel. Generally 6-10 weeks to report delivery from site visit date.
*Level 2 – Whole Site Designs build off of the work performed in a Level 1- Site Assessment (a Level 1 is the foundational site work up that we do at the beginning of any design work). If you have already had a Level 1 performed for your site and choose to continue on to a Level 2, the cost of the Level 1 will be credited towards the cost of a Level 2 (since we’d have to do the Level 1 anyways!).
Testimonials
The Wann Family
Thank you Wes and Casey!
We are beyond pleased with the Level 2 design you created for our homestead! We feel infinitely more confident now with your guidance and wealth of resources you have introduced us to. Most of all, we are so ecstatic to begin joining the regenerative movement and permaculture communities. The next few years will be filled with exponential learning, growth and healing. We owe such gratitude to both of you for your guidance, kindness, openness, and extensive knowledge. Thank you for being so creative, insightful and inspiring!
~ The Wann Family
The Gomez Family
Both Wes and Casey have an incredible ability to be thorough and have the knowledge to help make the plan a reality. Having 7th Generation Design on hand to bring the actual working details in to focus has been paramount to realizing our vision at GC Family Farm.
Aaron Gomez, GC Family Farm
The Human Nature School
7th Gen brought an impressive breadth of information and understanding that was well beyond the scope of collective knowledge within our organization. This was true in initial conversations and throughout the many weeks of design process. Also, our process of designing involved roughly 40 people giving input in a variety of dynamic ways over numerous occasions, 7th Gen’s facilitation of this was masterful and very engaging for these participants.
~ Matt & Kriya Miller – Co-Executive Directors, Human Nature School
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