We were thrilled to design a brand new 36-unit multi-family building located right on University Avenue in Berkeley. We served as the Design Architect on this project, taking it all the way from conception through Planning approvals in the challenging city of Berkeley.

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Located at the corner of University Avenue and McGee, this vacant lot has had (3) previous designs from other Architects. We increased the number of units and the commercial square footage simply by making the garage more efficient with the use of car stackers, and carving out a central courtyard to bring in more light to the middle of the building.

 

We believe strongly in natural light and landscaping in our projects. Here, the open courtyard we created at the center of the building allowed us to bring light from two directions into each unit, and allow for cross-ventilation. We envisioned a lush, landscaped courtyard, with planters on each level including a three story wall planter for all the residents to enjoy. 

 

As part of our work, we proposed a big change to the exterior design of the building, making it more modern and more colorful. Our initial schemes had a much bolder color scheme and pattern layout, but was refined in the Design Review process to fit more consistently with the surrounding context.

 

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