Bernal Heights Residence | Mork-Ulnes Architects |  https://www.morkulnes.com

The project started as a re-design of an old, shingled Victorian house, but the scope changed drastically when a fire ravaged the home on Christmas 2017. The single-story house was previously overshadowed by its taller two-story gabled neighbors. As the fire forced a reevaluation of scope and scale, Mork-Ulnes evaluated the proportions and exterior massing of neighboring homes. For the exterior, the charred black painted silhouette was intended to take cues from its quintessential San Francisco neighbors. The proportions, scale, and massing are derived from its surroundings, but reinterpret Edwardian design cues into more abstract decorative elements like siding patterns and solid-void composition.

Photo credit: Bruce Damonte

Golden Gate Heights Residence | John Lum Architecture | https://johnlumarchitecture.com

Perched atop Golden Gate Heights with views of the Marin Headlands, this mid-century residence didn't do justice to its spectacular setting. A compartmentalized floor plan, with deteriorated fixtures and finishes, made for a dated feel. It was time for a major reset. The house was reconceptualized, inside and out. The goal was to elevate its roots and create a space that would accommodate large gatherings while keeping an intimate, personal feel for everyday living. The client had a strong aesthetic and having grown up in Eastern Europe wanted a house that would work with his collection of proto-modernist furniture. The focus was on simplifying the house. The exterior form was stripped of its dilapidated painted cladding and replaced with natural cedar siding and cement plaster; durable materials meant to weather in place. A shou sugi ban screen provides a unifying base, hiding the garage doors with the only penetration being the distinctive orange glass front gate. Passing through that gate is otherworldly, transforming the outside world into a surreal experience that recalls the Light and Space Movement of 1970’s California. Guests are ushered to a staircase that leads to a Zendo-inspired garden and front door.

Photo Credit: Paul Dyer

Russian Hill Residence | Dumican Mosey Architects | https://www.dumicanmosey.com

Located at the end of a narrow mid-block alley in the pedestrian-oriented and densely rich context of San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood, this project involved a reimagination and expansion of an existing two-unit home while merging the subject property with a small adjacent vacant lot bordering the shared mid-block open space. The design maintains the small existing building footprint, focusing on preserving the adjacent open space while expanding the living space by converting a storage area at the garden level and up through a single-story vertical addition. The bold, faceted, object-like red stair provides a glimpse into the nature of the house from the alley level and connects all 4 floors vertically. A quiet, modern façade becomes the reimagined face fronting the narrow alley and frames the pedestrian view to Coit Tower.

Photo Credit: Blake Marvin Photography

Mint Hill Residence | Red Dot Studio | http://www.reddotstudio.com

The home was built for another site and another time. Moved from Bernal Heights to Waller Street, adjacent apartments blocked light into the windows built for another place. On an early trip to the home the architect saw that the bathroom lightwell had the best light and became the stair location bringing sunshine through the core of the house. The team added a story and a housing unit to the property with a garden apartment and two-story home above. The client’s strong eclectic design and environmental sensibility inspired the integration of a fan, radiant heat, no AC, PV with battery backup throughout the entire house. The home is almost entirely electric, except for the hot water heater, as Heat Pump Water Heaters were not as prevalent or affordable at the time of the design and build phase of this house. Gas is routed to the water heater and the homeowner’s goal is to replace this with an electric water heater when the time for replacement comes.

Photo Credit: Leslie Williamson

Twin Peaks Residence | Michael Hennessey Architecture | https://www.hennesseyarchitect.com

On a downslope lot in San Francisco, a restrained composition of steel frames, aluminum windows, and deep gray cement plaster makes up the facade of this three-unit residential building. On the lower level, a two-story unit makes the most of its connection to the outdoors, opening to a spare garden finished with fine gravel and concrete, onto which dappled light spills through the canopy of a new tree. A double-height volume holds the living room and kitchen, while the bedroom tucks into a mezzanine for a private, cozy retreat. Strategically placed vertical windows provide privacy for the building’s one-story middle unit, the space slowly decompressing to culminate in a high-ceilinged living room that leads onto a generous deck with sweeping views of San Francisco. The distance from the street on the building’s highest level allowed the architects to give the owners’ suite, located on the top unit’s second floor, an entirely glazed front facade, producing a space with visual connections to its surroundings in both the front and the back.

Photo credit: Adam Rouse Photography