Walker Warner’s clients for this coastal project are savvy connoisseurs of residential architecture. “We have a long history with them,” says Greg Warner. “They have among the largest architectural appetites I know of.” Here, that appetite is satisfied through a filter of abstinence—eliminating superfluous spaces and appurtenances. Yes, there is only one sink in the primary suite.
An earlier concept aimed to surpass their previous Walker Warner home, until a series of trips to other countries caused the clients to rethink their goals. “In Japan, they saw little cottages pulled apart,” says Greg. “It changed their whole outlook.” Project manager Amadeo Bennetta concurs, “They thought about what they really need. Then the project became an exercise in simplification and editing.”
It’s still a large house, designed to absorb returning adult children and their families, but it feathers the program around existing trees and toward incomparable views. “Cottages” containing the primary suite, a combination library and living area, and the kitchen, dining, and family room are pulled apart and reconnected with glass breezeways. An additional breezeway leads to the guest wing and entry at the front of the house.
“It’s the network of breezeways that make the project function,” Greg explains. “It allows us to tap into the surroundings with the landscape architect. It’s a quiet way to build, and it almost feels like a relief. You’ll be able to look right over the project and see the coast.”
Renderings
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Coastal California
Architect: Greg Warner, AIA; Amadeo Bennetta, RA, project manager, Walker Warner Architects, San Francisco
Builder: Stocker & Allaire, Monterey, California
Landscape Architect: Lutsko Associates, San Francisco
Project Size: 7,910 square feet
Site size: 2.35 acres
Renderings: Notion Workshop