Alta Vista Residence

Bungalows built in the 1920s once lined the quaint, live oak–populated streets of Travis Heights in Austin. But today, many new houses in the highly desirable neighborhood that borders bustling South Congress Avenue have given in to the unfortunate trope that everything is bigger in Texas. Filling lots close to their property lines, their floor plans are designed to take full advantage of zoning-allotted square footage.

When an architect and his wife approached local firm Alterstudio Architecture to design their house here, all parties agreed it should in no way follow the example of its recently constructed neighbors. What resulted is a 4,453-square-foot, flat-roofed building complex that, from the street, presents more akin to the original bungalows—an appropriately scaled, single-story structure set back with a small yard that foregrounds a massive live oak. Cross a wooden footbridge and enter the house, however, and it opens itself to its site’s natural topography: The first story sits elevated 10 feet within the canopy of another pair of historical trees in the back garden while an additional two floors nestle into the natural hillside. The lowest level is half-hidden underground and adds 1,613 square feet of living space that’s classified as basement, which does not factor into Austin’s floor-area ratio requirements. This clever design allows its homeowners much more interior breathing room without crowding the property in built structures.

Meanwhile, a 617-square-foot accessory dwelling unit stands 10 feet from the main house, but you’d never know it. Originally built for the couple’s son, who recently moved out, the secondary structure is hidden by a vertical board-formed concrete wall. Mirroring another at the front of the house, this wall reads more as part of the landscape than a privacy parapet and creates an effect of true independence for the ADU’s current occupant—a graduate student who rents the space from the homeowners.

“As architects, we so prefer the position of designing a building that has an intriguing appearance, but a degree of modesty, and that reveals it upon experiencing it,” says Alterstudio principal Kevin Alter, who also notes that taking advantage of the intrinsic opportunities of the site was important to the overall design strategy. “This house is a prime canvas for the beautiful shadows and shape of the tree out front. And then as you meander into it, you realize that you’re in this whole other world.” Case in point: A 24 1/2-foot-wide series of sliding glass doors at the back of the main house, adjacent to the primary living room with an open-plan kitchen and dining room on the same level, opens onto a terrace and imparts the feeling of living among the trees.

White oak offers a handsome all-over effect in this main interior space. It envelops the covered entrance and continues inside, cladding one wall to further emphasize the indoor-outdoor connection. The textured marks of formwork on the concrete walls reference wood yet again, and the wall at the front is topped with clerestory windows that draw daylight in throughout the first floor, hinting at the vista to be discovered at the back. In fact, the entire design is focused on the views of the forest-like surroundings where, Alter says, the ADU “feels more like a cabin in the woods than in the backyard.”

“One of the great pleasures of being an architect is in helping people figure out how this extraordinary investment will change the way they live,” Alter says. This project presents not only a new vision of its typology but also an appreciation of architecture’s craft. Here, beauty is found in a wood grain or the way the sun casts shadows on a textured surface. “I think this house has a lot of curb appeal,” sums Alterstudio associate architect Michael Woodland, AIA, “but it’s not shouting at you.”

PROJECT CREDITS
Project Name: Alta Vista Residence, Austin.
Architect: Alterstudio Architecture, Austin. Kevin Alter; Ernesto Cragnolino, FAIA; Tim Whitehill; Michael Woodland, AIA; Matt Slusarek, AIA; Haifa Hammami; Shelley McDavid
Builder: Abode Modern Homes
Landscape Architect: Aleman Design Build
Structural Engineer: MJ Structures
Geotechnical Engineer: Capital Geotechnical Services

MATERIALS AND SOURCES
Exterior Cladding: Metal Sales Manufacturing Corporation; US Lumber Brokers
Entry Doors, Door Hardware, Locksets: Emtek; SS Stuttgart; Sugatsune; Pivot Door Company
Roof Windows, Skylights, Tubular Skylights: Velux; Lincoln
Window Wall Systems, Sliding, and/or Folding: Fleetwood Series 3070
Rolling Screen Phantom Screen
Other Exterior: StoQuik Gold Finish System
Insulation, Housewrap: Demilec Sealaction 500
Thermal and Moisture Barriers: Huber Engineered Woods
HVAC Systems: Lennox
Humidity Control Equipment: Lennox
Ventilation: Seiho; Luxury Metals
Other Systems: Price Industries
Cabinetry: Signature Cabinets custom cabinetry
Countertops: Caesarstone
Finishes: Landmark; Florida Tile; CEGI; CEPAC Tile; Iris USA
Flooring: Hardwood Bargains
Hardware, Cabinetry: Linnea; Top Knob; EPCO
Surfacing (other than counters): Emtek; Valli+Valli; Hager; Sugatsune; OMNIA; AHI; Hawa; Stanley
Rolling Shades: Austin Shade Works
Appliances: GE; Whirlpool; Bosch; SubZero; Maytag; Marvel; Blaze; Best Range Hoods
Exterior Lighting: SORAA
Interior Lighting: Halo; Saylite; Minka Aire Rota
Lighting Control Systems, Wallplates, Switches: Lutron
Home Control Systems: Nest
AV and Home Theater Components: Smarter Homes
Window Shading Systems: Somfy; Phantom Screens
Other Electrical: Leviton; Mockett; Hubbell; Deltana; Nutone
Decking: Eastside Lumber and Decking
Sprinkler Systems: Toro Irrigation
Interior paints, Stains, Coatings: Sherwin Williams

This article first appeared in the March 2023 issue of ARCHITECT.