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THE GARCIA-DECREDICO-SHERMAN HOUSE The focus of the GDeS plan is flexibility, which was a hallmark of Eichler homes, Garcia observes, but never quite like this. Built around an inflexible utility core, the house has an open living area and a bedroom area that can change along with the family. "The intent is to make the house as flexible as people's lifestyles," DeCredico says. As shown in the plan, the wing has a master bedroom, two smaller bedrooms, and a third at the front that could be a home office. But the layout can be reconfigured. Every wall in the wing, including walls of storage, moves along a ceiling track or folds against a wall. The GDeS plan includes one clear Eichler touch, an atrium, here called a 'courtyard,' surrounded by house. The public portion of the steel post-and-beam house, separated from the bedrooms by the courtyard and the utility core of kitchen and bathrooms, opens completely to the outside with folding doors. In contrast to the window-walled living area, the inner core would be solid, probably using a modular system like concrete block. The bedroom section opens up using louvers of solid wood, translucent glass, and clear glass. Louvers could be removed or rearranged in different patterns. Besides glass and louvers, siding could be a low-maintenance composite material of recycled paper and plastic bottles, or a material that layers plywood and plastics. The house uses nothing but passive solar for heating, though there is room for a supplementary mechanical heating system. The concrete slab floor, which sits above an air pocket, absorbs sunlight during the day and radiates it back at night. Roof sections are flat, low gabled, and single-sloped. Over the bedroom wing, a trellised roof floats above a lower membrane roof, filtering the sunlight and providing an insulating layer of cool air. The design incorporates two different roofing systems -- light-colored single ply on the flat areas, standing seam metal on the slopes.  
THE AS DESIGN HOUSEAdamson and Saponara focused on efficiency in their design, with virtually no space devoted to circulation, and cabinets doing double duty as walls. They dropped the atrium, which often goes unused, Saponara says. What their plan calls an 'atrium' is really the entry courtyard. Instead of focusing inwards, rooms face outwards onto terraces. Folding doors allow the living area to open to the out-of-doors. The T-plan separates public and private areas, with steel posts and laminated beams providing unobstructed space in the living area. The master bedroom and secondary bedrooms face separate terraces. "People today want more privacy," Adamson says. Secondary bedrooms in Eichlers are often small with small windows, Saponara says. Here, walls of windows face the terrace. "We wanted each to have a nice quality of space," she says. As in an Eichler house, the childrens' bathroom opens to the outside. The AS Design house uses radiant heat in a concrete slab that also serves as a passive solar collector, overhangs for shading, and a butterfly roof to collect rainwater, which is channeled to a decorative backyard cistern that provides water for irrigation. A light-colored single-ply roofing system covers the flat areas of the roof. For interior and exterior siding, the ceiling, insulation, and structural support, Adamson and Saponara propose using 'SIPS' (structural insulated panels), which sandwich hard foam between layers of wood. Exterior siding would be protected by a wooden rain screen, separated from the wall by an air pocket, to prevent water damage and mold. Cabinetry and closets serve as walls in the family room, between the kitchen-dining area and garage, and elsewhere. The 'hobby' room opens onto the terrace with no internal connection to the rest of the house. The house deliberately harks back to Eichler and his mid-century compatriots. "I'm very interested in regionalism," Adamson says. "This is our architecture, and it's worth expanding on and continuing."  
Photos by David Toerge For your next building project, consider the Eichler Network's team of 'Preferred Service Companies'
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