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Architects: Craig Steely Architecture
- Area: 1900 ft²
- Year: 2013
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Photographs:Bruce Damonte
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Text description provided by the architects. Located above San Francisco’s Dolores Park on a steep site bordering a public garden, the decidedly small house, (only 1800 square feet) builds on this steep lot as efficiently as possible.
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Rather than the typical construction practice of locating foundations staggered up the hillside, Peter’s house locates a 24 ft. x 24 ft. cast-in-place concrete garage at the lowest level and builds a 3-story glass tower above it, altering the land and native hillside drainage very little.
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The top living floor then spans from a flat plateau at top of the lot to the tower like a bridge, essentially reducing the amount of excavation typically involved in construction of this type by 2/3.
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Beyond the structural challenges, the biggest issue in designing Peter’s house was opening the building to the expansive view while maintaining a level of privacy from the sidewalk and garden that pass alongside.
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Around the time the house was being designed, the new on-ramp to the Golden Gate Bridge was under construction which necessitated clearing a grove of Monterey Cypress trees in it’s path from the Presidio. We secured some of these trees and working with a local milling shop turned them into 90 solid wood louvers (fixed on the exterior/operable on the interior) that regulate openness and privacy.