2 Year: 2024|Entry Categories: Residential Design - Built
Healdsburg Knoll
Located in a remote area of Sonoma County, the house is sited on a knoll surrounded by sloping land including steep canyons and oak meadows below. We wanted to preserve the legibility of the landform on this topographically special site.
The owners requested that the design of the new compound for their extended family incorporate their desire to live outdoors as much as indoors and to create a sense of procession up and over the knoll, allowing for spaces and vistas to distant slopes and valleys to unfold.
We pulled apart the living-dining, sleeping and guest areas, draping them like saddlebags over the edge of the knoll, freeing center stage for the sequence of outdoor spaces framed by the indoor living areas.
Design Challenge
Prior to construction, a wildfire burned through the site consuming majestic oak trees and surrounding forests. Subsequently a comprehensive fire study was conducted that resulted in two focus areas to fire-harden the structures: the building envelope and the surrounding landscape zones.
The building envelope uses non-flammable materials including concrete, Corten panels for siding, Alpolic panels and plaster for the exterior soffits. A key component is also the addition of exterior sprinklers on the roof and around the perimeter. These sprinklers are connected to a 58,000-gallon water tank that relies on gravity for operating the system. All water connections above and below ground were selected to not melt in the event of a fire.
The house, with the large floating roof over the central living area and shading over the windows, is designed to promote easy indoor-outdoor living. Passive ventilation with operable high clerestory windows keeps the house temperature comfortable during the hot summer months. To address poor air quality due to wildfire smoke, air conditioning with an advanced air filtration system is available in select areas to create a safe indoor retreat. The system utilizes a high efficiency electric heat pump and power generated by the onsite photovoltaic array.Physical Context
The client lived in a yurt for several seasons to get to know the land. Their request was to provide a welcoming house with 6 bedrooms for their extended family that would provide for outdoor living in equal measure to indoor living. They love outdoor cooking for large family gatherings. These requests formed the basis for our design where the house is itself the void—centered on the sheltered outdoor cooking fireplace and living area that opens out to the flat lawn for playing and the pool beyond.
