Gold Nugget Winners Signal New Era in Housing Design

Housing starts and building permits edged up significantly last month, suggesting the industry may be slowly creeping its way toward a rebound. But if the winners of this year’s Gold Nugget Awards are any indication, the new projects coming off the boards don't look much like the homes that were fueling architecture and design competitions at the height of the housing boom.

The latest crop of winners, announced Thursday during a ceremony at PCBC in San Francisco, are playing by different rules, it seems. Generally speaking, they are smaller, greener, more urban, and more affordable. Many of these winning houses make ingenious use of what’s already there, be it an existing building shell, an adjacent transit station, or a beach. Context has never mattered more.

Below we offer a sneak preview of the 2009 Gold Nugget Awards in pictures. Watch for more winner profiles in the August issue of BUILDER.

Yanonali Court
Santa Barbara, Calif.

The Trend: Green infill

The design review process in Santa Barbara is about as stringent as they come, but that didn’t stop architects Barry and Jeff Berkus and builder Steve Berkus (yes, they are related) from turning this quarter acre into something special--special enough to be named 2009 Project of the Year.

The five infill units that make up this little pocket village are organized around a central courtyard and share an outdoor fireplace and fountain. With their crisp stucco walls, red tile roofs, wrought iron railings, arched windows, and decorative tile, the homes revere the city's local architectural tradition, which blends Spanish, Mediterranean, and Moorish influences. But they aren’t cookie cutter. Each residence is thoughtfully oriented with its own unique entry and arrival sequence.

Furthermore, these delightful little gems (which range in size from just 954 square feet to 1,989 square feet) are more than just a pretty picture. The project as a whole scored LEED Platinum certification and went on to become a pilot for the city’s “Built Green” program. Water-conserving features such as on-site rainwater collection, pervious paving materials, and xeriscaping with sustainable irrigation practices are central to its drought tolerant mission.

Herein lies an impeccable model for good architecture and craftsmanship, not to mention sustainability.--Jenny Sullivan

Award: Project of the Year and Grand for outstanding sustainable residential neighborhood, attached
Builder: Berkus Construction, Santa Barbara.
Architects/Land planners: Jeffrey Berkus Architects, Aspen, Colo. and B3 Architects, a Berkus Design Studio, Santa Barbara
Developer: Del Mar Development/Berkus Construction, Santa Barbara

The Classics at Miramonte (Plan 3)

Mountain View, Calif.

The Trend: Small lot development

What is it about a shingled house that looks just right no matter where it is? New England, California, the Midwest--many parts of this country can rightfully claim shingles as their own.

With its steep roof and asymmetrical front windows, this quirky, not-so-little, four-bedroom house looks right at home with its more traditional California stucco neighbors. That’s something that stood out for the judges. “When grouped with other diverse dwellings in this GreenPoint-rated community, the shingle-style home forms an intimate streetscape that brings back the eclectic charm of early 20th-century California neighborhoods,” commented one juror.

Inside, it’s all about efficiency and getting the most out of a 2,173-square-foot home on a 35-foot-wide lot. It has three stories, something that’s barely noticeable from the outside. The master suite is tucked into the third story, which has been a popular feature with prospective buyers. On the first floor, the open plan features a dining room, living room and kitchen, with an alley-loaded two-car garage off the back. The second floor is packed with three bedrooms, a loft, a laundry room, and one of the home’s 2½ baths. There’s even a tiny bit of yard in front and back.

Located within walking distance of Mountain View’s energetic downtown, the neighborhood is even selling well. Within three weeks of opening, 14 homes had been sold. This positive response has led the builder to start construction on the enclave’s remaining 44 homes. In this economy, that’s downright spectacular for homes that range from $1,079,500 to $1,099,950. –-Kathleen Stanley

Award: Grand for outstanding detached home on a compact lot
Builder/Developer: Classic Communities, Palo Alto, Calif.
Architect/Land planner: Dahlin Group Architecture Planning, Pleasanton, Calif.

Redwood Village
Woodinville, Wash.

The Trend: Re-use of an existing structure

What do you do with a 39-unit, ’70s-era townhome project that’s definitely seen better days? Particularly if the burdens involved in rehabbing it are formidable: an unusual zipper-shaped footprint for each of the two separate buildings; strict shoreline zone regulations that called for limited changes to the building envelope; old-fashioned floor plans; and yard areas that needed a complete facelift?

You make the most of the site and keep it simple.

To take advantage of views down the valley and of Mt. Rainier, the architects behind this clever rehab added large windows and changed the shared walls or reoriented the units 90 degrees from the previous layout. They also drastically reconfigured the dated floor plans to create a more modern open kitchen, dining and living room area. A loft-style unit was created by placing the living/dining/kitchen spaces on the second level. In all, there are five different unit plans that range in size from 1,100 square feet to 1,700 square feet.

The revised architecture blends Northwest Craftsman style with European wine country details, an appropriate touch given its Woodinville wine valley location. Newly landscaped courtyard entries and terraced back decks were added to provide private and semi-private outdoor spaces, and a regional trail can be accessed from all the back terraces. –-Kathleen Stanley

Award: Grand for outstanding renovated or restored project
Builder: Exxel Pacific, Bellingham, Wash.
Developer: MJR Development, Kirkland, Wash.
Architect: Tiscareno Associates, Seattle

Sandyland Cove Beach House
Santa Barbara, Calif.

The trend: Small scale historic preservation

The view alone from this fresh coastal home might have been enough to warrant an award. But the structural makeover--which upgraded a fine specimen of historic postwar architecture with a touch of California contemporary style, not to mention seismic improvements--made it a surefire winner.

With its sweeping views of the Pacific, this beach house on half an acre exudes a playful ambiance, yet still manages retain the original feel created by Lutah Mariah Riggs, chief designer for George Washington Smith during the 1920s.

Given its location across from a salt marsh preserve, the rehab required a setback variance and a coastal development permit, including the removal of invasive plants and the restoration of native dune and marsh vegetation. Renovations connected the house to the city sewer and added an extra 900 square feet to the original structure, mostly via a second story addition. Although the house is now taller, it continues to maintain a respectful scale that plays nice with the neighbors. Its graceful wood frame creates a semi-circular arc that radiates out 120 degrees to capture a variety of ocean views, and a spacious deck and cabana in the lap of the house make the most of those views.

All that and the house now incorporates natural materials, solar power and other energy efficient features, making it more than a charming build but an environmentally friendly build at that. --Monica Stern-Morales

Award: Grand for outstanding renovated or restored single house
Builder: TruBuilt Construction, Santa Barbara, Calif.
Architect/Land planner: ON Design Architects, Santa Barbara

990 Polk Street
San Francisco

The Trend: Affordable senior housing

Located in the center of San Francisco's Tenderloin District, 990 Polk isn't your typical senior housing development. For starters, half of its units are reserved for low-income seniors, while the other half are occupied by formerly homeless seniors--a group with substantially greater management needs, notes architect Steven Rajninger. “The building was something of an experiment in mixing the two groups,” he says.

Furthermore, the building itself is, in effect, a vertical village. A first floor devoted to community-serving retail, social services offices, a small medical clinic, and parking is topped by eight floors with 110 apartment units.

Measuring just 375 square feet, the project’s 81 studio units are tiny, but efficiently designed with sleeping alcoves and other space-saving features. These private quarters are balanced by a number of spacious, shared common areas. And residents enjoy multiple points of access to fresh air, thanks to a podium level garden that serves as an extension of the second floor community room and computer center, as well as roof gardens on the 8th and 9th floors.

Among the building’s more ingenious moves are its circulation spaces. Instead of being buried in the core of the building (as is conventional practice), corridors with large windows hug the perimeter, thus drawing in natural light and creating visual connections to the city outside. This acts as a wayfinding guide for elders who are prone to disorientation, Rajninger notes. Glassy double-height elevator lobbies further this effect. --Jenny Sullivan

Award: Grand for outstanding affordable project, 30 du/acre or more
Builder: Swinerton Builders, San Francisco
Architect: Herman Coliver Locus Architecture, San Francisco
Developer: Citizens Housing Corp. and Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corp., San Francisco

The Dalton
Pasadena, Calif.

The Trend: Mixed use near transit

Urbanites who like walkable, lively, bustling neighborhoods might say this project has it all. Located in the heart of Pasadena’s central business district, the 55 loft-style units in this handsome building are stacked on top of 7,000 square feet of ground floor retail.

The fact that the building is positioned directly across the street from a major light rail stop was a bonus not just for residents, but also for the developer. The adjacency allowed for maximum development through reduced parking requirements and allowances for increased density and building height.

But the scale feels just right, and the project swiftly disproves any assumptions that higher density and taller heights are unseemly. Variations in massing, window placement, and color--punctuated by public art at street level--give the structure an eclectic, even sculptural presence. For those who live there, a multitude of courtyards and decks provide open space, natural light, and views of distant snow-capped peaks and California sunsets.

“The design contributes to the quality of the public realm at both the pedestrian scale level and the building scale level,” said one judge. “The building forms have a rhythm and proportion that respect and reinforce the colorful texture of this urban neighborhood.”

Award: Grand for outstanding mixed use project
Builder: American General Constructors, Glendale, Calif.
Architect: Studio One Eleven Perkowitz + Ruth Architects
Developer: Champion Development Group