Tree House
Architecture Residential La Crescenta Montrose, California, United States Of America
18 Images
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1. Front Facade Detail View A detail of the front facade as it engages playfully with the trees with a variety of small windows opening in different directions. 4200 px 2800 px 15 MB A4 print |
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2. Master Bedroom The experience of the master bedroom creates the illusion of inhabiting a treehouse 4256 px 2832 px 1 MB A4 print |
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3. False Front A close-up of the false front facade with a large concrete foundation which is expressed as a planter to soften the building edge at the ground plane. 2800 px 4200 px 13 MB A4 print |
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4. View from Below Oak Tree The house ultimately became a paean to the magnificent oak tree 4200 px 2800 px 15 MB A4 print |
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5. Front Facade The home as approached from the street, as seen through the tree 4200 px 2800 px 16 MB A4 print |
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6. View from Driveway A view of the entry illustrating the proximity of the cantilevered bedroom to the oak tree and the new landscaping and entry sequence below. 4200 px 2800 px 15 MB A4 print |
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7. View from Rear A view of the new dining room at the rear. 4200 px 2800 px 10 MB A4 print |
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8. Dining Room 2832 px 4256 px 4 MB A4 print |
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9. Stairs Playful windows illuminating the stairway. 4256 px 2832 px 4 MB A4 print |
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10. A view at the top of the stairs looking into the master bedroom. 2800 px 4200 px 6 MB A4 print |
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11. Window Wall The window wall, high above the street and screened behind the oak tree for privacy. 4200 px 2800 px 11 MB A4 print |
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12. First Floor Plan 8800 px 13600 px 10 MB A3 print |
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13. Second Floor Plan 8800 px 13600 px 10 MB A3 print |
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14. Diagram 1/3 The existing home 7201 px 5401 px 916 KB A3 print |
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15. Diagram 2/3 The roof removed and the bridge supports installed 9601 px 7201 px 2 MB A3 print |
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16. Diagram 3/3 The second floor bridge in place 9601 px 7201 px 2 MB A3 print |
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17. Section Diagram A house is typically not designed to support the load of a second story, so the project was envisioned as a bridge spanning from a new dining room at the rear to a false front facade, thus floating effortlessly above the existing house. 3000 px 2400 px 672 KB Print - Low res only |
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18. Existing House 4256 px 2832 px 6 MB A4 print |
Description
LOC was presented with a modest two bedroom bungalow nestled in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. Constrained by a small backyard and a mature protected oak tree in the front, the only possibility for adding two additional bedrooms was to create a second story, one that was constrained by but ultimately become a paean to the tree.
Questions and Answers
How is the project unique?
The tree.
What was the brief?
The client, a material engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, gave LOC a straightforward project brief- two add two bedrooms and two bath to a small two bedroom bungalow in La Crescenta, CA
Key products used:
Amteco Wood Stain
Milgard Windows
Who are the clients and what's interesting about them?
The client is a material engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He took a particular interest in the cedar cladding of the project, as we all wanted to maintain a natural look and minimize maintenance. We ultimately settled on an Amteco Wood Stain
What were the solutions?
Adding a second story to an existing house is problematic, as the existing structure is not designed to support a second floor. We addressed this by rebuilding a dining room at the rear and adding a false wall at the front facade, allowing the new second story to span over the existing house, like a bridge.
What were the key challenges?
The site was quite small, with a very small backyard, and a mature protected oak tree in the front, forcing us to add vertically, and two build extremely closely to the tree which required additional permitting due to its protected status
Details
| Project size | 2000 ft2 |
| Site size | 5000 ft2 |
| Completion date | 2012 |
| Building levels | 2 |
Project team
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LOC Architects |