Building a Small House from Scratch.
Moffat
Berkeley, California | 2016
We started with a dilapidated old garage in the back yard, which was in such bad shape that we really enjoyed tearing it down. Then we got to work creating the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU)—the style closely matches and plays off the look of the main house. It was fun to build a structure from the ground up—that’s an unusual experience here in the East Bay.
Architect: David Moffat
Essentially we built a small house, so the challenges lay in executing the many steps necessary in a ground-up construction project. Everything was clean and built correctly from the start, as opposed to a remodeling job where the battle is one of trying to meld the old and the new.
The most striking detail here is the pop-up section in the middle of the room. The space is small, but the tall ceiling makes it feel bigger. The windows up by the ceiling fan also bring in a great deal of light that wasn’t available on the ground level because of neighboring trees and houses.
The homeowners created some beautiful landscaping to tie the main house and the ADU together. Their yard is an oasis; a real escape from the bustle of the Berkeley streets out front.
“This project was unique, because the homeowner was the architect. David was a fun guy to work for—he came out every day with sketches of details he wanted to incorporate into the scope of the project. It was a very collaborative experience. And even though it’s a small structure, David’s design makes it interesting—it’s not just a box in the back yard.”
