DETAILS +

This narrow lot on 5th Street in Santa Monica is all but invisible behind the rows of dense ficus trees lining both sides of the street. Using these trees as inspiration, the design of this mixed use project seeks to imagine what an industrial treehouse apartment building might be.

Vertical metal louvers span between the floor plates which are expressed as steel C-channels. Between these louvers are floor-to-ceiling metal windows accented with wood posts. Wedge-shaped balconies, the undersides of which are clad in wood, project dramatically into the trees, offering each unit a small perch from which to enjoy their own slice of the urban forest.

CLIENT: WS COMMUNITIES

PROGRAM: 4-STORY MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT WITH 41 RESIDENTIAL UNITS AND 1,900 SF RETAIL

YEAR: ESTIMATED CONSTRUCTION START SUMMER 2022

TEAM:

• DESIGN ARCHITECT, PLANNING AND ENTITLEMENTS - MISTY KAPLAN / FIFTH WALL ARCHITECTURE

• EXECUTIVE ARCHITECT - KILLEFER FLAMMANG ARCHITECTS