Hillside Residence

Project Details

Project Description

Builder's Choice and Custom Home Awards Finalist

The Hillside Residence is a substantial renovation and expansion of a 1927 bungalow in Travis Heights. The existing, 1000 sf building was rescued from dilapidation and delineated abstractly in stark white, and paired with a new, 1100 sf sculptural volume clad black-stained cypress, connected via a glass entry bridge. Akin to Marcel Breuer’s 1943 proposition for a Bi-Nuclear House, the home is split into two zones; one for living and socializing, and the other for concentration, work and sleeping – and by virtue of entering in the middle, both sides appear to be in dialogue with each other.

The renovation respects the existing building's disposition and maintains its collection of discrete rooms, while radically altering their character. A series of private rooms now take the place of what was public, and the front porch is removed, leaving the existing bungalow’s massing in tact but without any obvious way to enter from the street. This private nucleus is accessed through a new corridor that leads to an unexpectedly tall central space, off of which are arrayed the private rooms of the house.

An ultimately modern sensibility in the addition provides a counterpoint to the sense of contained space in the original house. Carefully orchestrated windows and skylights further open the house to the sky and sun, and provide a continued sense of expansiveness. Oriented for solar orientation and cross ventilation, the Hillside residence also is outfitted for a rainwater collection system, solar photovoltaic array, solar pool heating tubes, cellular foam insulation, and tankless water heaters. Moreover, our clients’ desire for a sustainable lifestyle is also reflecting in their decision to live centrally and work from home.