2870 Stonehill

We are Jeremiah and Norah Small. Norah and I are both professionals. I have worked from home in a DIY detached garage office conversion for over fifteen years. Norah has worked from home for the past 10 months. She will work from home regularly from now on. We have two college-age daughters: Lily (20) and Fiona (18) who will be living with us off and on for the future and we may need to add a parent or two to our household at some point. We are planning to undertake an addition and remodel of our home, to better accommodate workspaces and multigenerational housing, so we are in search of an architect to guide this project.

We both have design backgrounds (theatre design MFAs from NYU and UCSD). In the past I was a project manager for an entertainment construction company and Norah's clients are architects and engineers, so we have some understanding of the design and construction process.

Norah’s family purchased the house in 1972, and Norah spent her childhood here. After she left home for college, her parents did a low quality remodel (approximately 1995). They added a master suite and dining area making the house about 1800 square feet (three bedrooms and two bathrooms). Unfortunately, they ruined the original 50s ranch charm while they were at it.

Norah and I purchased the house from them in 2000. We have made some efforts to mitigate the aesthetic damage with some prior DIY remodeling efforts of both interior and exterior, but we are now ready to have a livable, beautiful home that reflects us visually and functionally and takes advantage of our gorgeous climate.

Motivations

We are motivated by beauty and harmony. We enjoy a personal connection with our home through gardening and appreciation of the broader environment our home is in. We like being able to participate with the seasonal patterns of light and air that this canyon offers by opening and closing shades and windows to harness them. We appreciate spaces that support both congregating together and sanctuaries for solitude. We would love to be able to incorporate an elevated view of the city, either as an outdoor overlook, an indoor picture window, or both.

Here is a list of things we'd like to end up with when the whole project is complete in no particular order. They are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Some of these use cases could be in multi-use/convertible spaces:

Architectural harmony
Indoor/outdoor spaces
Outdoor cooking
Consideration for indoor-only cats and keeping out mosquitos
Two offices
Four bedrooms
Three bathrooms
Main kitchen/dinging area
Future option to separate a bedroom/bathroom for multi-generational and/or rental apartment
Kitchenette (or stub plumbing to add one)
Communal space for watching movies and TV
Quiet space(s) for reading and books (no TV)
Space for doing puzzles and projects
Indoor sewing and crafting space
Indoor/outdoor workshop space
View/overlook space
Ample storage

Budget and Scope Goals

We have a budget goal of $410k (inclusive of design, engineering, construction, fees, taxes, and contingency), and the following is a prioritized list of things we’d like to accomplish depending on how far that will take us. We have to renovate our kitchen and a bathroom, and we have dreamed of an ADU. Our site is located in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ), which ostensibly makes it ineligible for ADU rules (more on that later). We hope there may be some way to get access to ADU rules, but we are open to a range of options with or without them. On the initial assumption that we will need to do a more traditional addition, here is a list of things we'd like to accomplish:

Replace kitchen
Replace family bathroom
Improve curb appeal
1. Replace windows
2. Refinish exterior
Legalize existing workshop/shed
New roofing on house and garage
Improve indoor-outdoor space flow
New second floor master suite (approximately 400 sq ft?)
New detached accessory building for studio/office space (under 120 sq ft?)

Existing Exterior

Existing Interior

Existing Roof

ADU Considerations

The Los Angeles County ADU Ordinance Summary states that an ADU is not permitted if:

Located in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) and does not have two means of access to a highway. Access must be 24 ft. wide, not including sidewalks, and unobstructed from the lot to the highway. Access must be paved in Hillside Management Areas. Each means of access must be built to public street standards approved by Public Works.

For this reason, we're assuming that using the east (back) portion of our lot and/or the garage as a point of departure for the new construction are ruled out. We'd love to be wrong about this, and we definitely would consider building the existing garage and/or shed area as an alternative to building up in the house footprint. The rest of the conceptual ideas below are based on the assumption that adding a second story to the garage would be a non-starter without ADU rules. We'd be willing to consider trying for a variance if that stands a chance of working, though we don't want to drag through any more bureaucracy than we have to.

Proposed Project Area

First Floor

The 675 sq ft ground floor remodel includes:

Kitchen + dining room (13x22)
Bathroom with walk-in shower (6.5x8)
Family room (13x22)
Hallway (3.5x14)

The ground floor includes an addition of 90 sq ft.

Second Floor

The 375 to 425 sq ft second floor addition includes:

Master bedroom with south-facing picture windows
Bathroom with walk-in shower
Walk-in closet

Lot Size and Boundaries

We are in the final stage of a lot line adjustment at the back (east) side of the lot. A coalition of nine adjacent property owners acquired and divided up the surplus vacant land between our back yards and the flood channel.

The original lot size was 7,072.7 sq ft, and the adjustment adds about 20' to the east, bringing the lot size up to 8,365.7 sq ft. See Lot 27 in the attached PDF.

Gooseberry Creek map 2020-02-13.pdf

Concept Model

The following screen captures are based on a SketchUp model that was originally created for an exterior landscaping project. We've added rough volumes in the proposed area for a new second level master suite above the family room, and a proposed area for a new writing studio accessory building in the back yard.

Front View

The rough volume for the second story is shown in contrasting materials. We like the idea of emphasizing the contrast, rather than trying to replicate the 1952 tract house forms. In this view there is also a suggestion of all the existing hideous 1990s Home Depot windows replaced with commercial-style plain glass

Front Overhead

The suggested rough volume is set back from the front of the existing house, and features a large south facing window wall. The existing solar array will need to be reconfigured for the new roof. In the back yard is a suggestion of a small detached writer's studio built in the same style as the second floor addition. We could consider building that structure before starting the main demolition if we decide to occupy the house during construction.

Rear View

In this view there is a suggestion of a new transition structure between both floors, as well as providing a new separate back entrance. The current thinking is that the rebuilt family room in the first floor could be closed off from the main kitchen with an internal pocket door, creating a separate apartment when/if we transition to a multi-generational configuration. In the short term, we'll keep everything open and use it as one unified house, but we like the idea of the new stair structure for the second floor providing a separate entrance.

Rear Overhead

The new transition structure between both floors is shown here with some suggestions of windows, but it might also be built much more open, or even completely open. We don't necessarily mind the idea of it being an un-insulated structure or even just a covered exterior stairway, similar to a beach house.