Infilling the California Dream – A Story of a Tiny Craftsman Home

San Diego’s eclectic North Park neighborhood is a vibrant mix of culture. It’s where multicultural food meets local craft beer and contemporary street art meets historic craftsman-style houses.

This project was designed for a couple who appreciates the heritage of their unique site but also intended to capture the vibrant energy of the North Park neighborhood. obrARCHITECTURE was invited to design the remodel/addition for their historic 1921 Craftsman style home and new Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) with the goal of blending the Owner’s desire for more tailored living space while at the same time, maintaining and reinforcing the dynamic lifestyle in this lively neighborhood.

The owners fell in love with and purchased a 1921 Craftsman style home on a corner lot in North Park, San Diego but it was lacking the open and modern living spaces they desired. After interviewing many architects, they connected the most with Christopher Bittner of obrARCHITECTURE who believes that a home can only be designed by understanding the lifestyle it is intended to compliment. To embody openness, the center wall and fireplace that divided the kitchen and living room was removed and a more unified living space was created by adding an expansive kitchen island and open shelving.

The second bedroom was turned into a home office that opens into the living area with bi-fold doors to convert the office into a guest bedroom. The most welcoming addition is the beer bar off the kitchen that opens onto a new exterior sunset-facing deck with wraparound benches, a roll up door, bar stools, and taps featuring local craft beers to reflect the owner's passion for craft brewing, aptly named, "The Laundry Room" complete with it's own logo.

For the second phase of construction, obrARCHITECTURE was asked to design the 500 square foot detached garage behind the existing residence into an ADU for friends, family and potential rentals. Conceptually, obrARCHITECTURE believed it was critical to achieve a meaningful dialog with the craftsman-style design of the house, ensuring that the unit would be designed as a part of the lineage of the house’s history rather than subverting it. Unlike most infill ADU projects, the owner envisioned the ADU to not only function as a space for living and working, but they also desired a space where they could retreat, relax, and enjoy their sunny California home. obrARCHITECURE’s goal was to spatially reorganize the function of the ground floor with the existing structure and provide a connection between the interior and exterior space.

The exploration started with reinforcing the ground floor relationship between the existing residence and the ADU. The ADU entrance was then designed to mirror the existing bifold doors in the main residence. The symmetry in the backyard creates a micro neighborhood with a new swimming pool addition as the center. A sunset-facing roof deck was included to provide an amazing view for guests to enjoy the owner's craft beer.

The living room, kitchen, and dining space were combined intentionally to align with the roof deck above and natural light is introduced via overhead openings in the living room to make for a natural, warm, and comfortable space. obrARCHITECTURE also provided a separate private entrance to this unit to add more flexibility for potential future rental options.

For more information on obrARCHITECUTRE's projects, head to www.obrarchitecture.com