West   
LA    
Hideaway 

 

r_c

Index


West LA Hideaway

Venice CA

Architecture, Landscape, Entitlement, Construction

Completed 2021

Photos: Reid Cigolle

 This house for a retired couple is a major addition and renovation to an 832 sf bungalow in Venice, purchased as an urban retreat after prolonged evacuations due to wildfires and mudslides near Montecito.  The small hideaway was quickly popular with family and friends, and larger gathering and quieter sleeping spaces were desired without sacrificing the privacy and unassuming tranquility of the old bungalow.

A new slab fills the missing quadrant of the original L-shaped structure, while the second level pushes toward the street to retain sunlight for the backyard.  One-story elements sandwich the enlarged mass, disguising scale at front and back.  Street-facing, a 14’ tall facade masks the upper story and organizes typical suburban elements; front door, garage door and kitchen window. Garden-facing, a portion of the original structure is rehabbed and preserved. 

A split front door enters the main living space which contains a large table and banquette positioned across from an open kitchen.  This two-story volume with exposed joists, pitched to mimic the bungalow roofline, is divided by two intersecting bridges; which define an atrium and provide access to a pair of bedrooms on the upper level.

The rebuilt raised wood floor emerges onto the new slab and leads through an elongated passageway to the intimate old bungalow.  A pair of pocket doors partition the single-story volume into a bedroom and den; and when the house is quiet, the doors open to form a continuous garden-facing suite.