Locally Inspired

By OCInSite Site Admin on December 17, 2011 6:00 AM

By Somer Flaherty

“When I was 10 years old, I knew I would either be an architect or a drummer in a heavy metal band,” says Anders Lasater. However, as a fortuitous event, the rise of grunge and alternative music in the early ’90s pushed heavy metal out of the spotlight, and Lasater shifted his focus, attending Cal Poly Pomona to study design.

After earning an undergraduate and master’s degree in architecture and becoming a licensed architect, Lasater became a teacher, instructing other precocious design students—a process he calls, “both exhilarating and heartbreaking.” Exhilarating because he can encourage and challenge a student, and then witness their creativity but heartbreaking because not all students are willing to take risks. “I refuse a life like that for myself, and I have to wish something more rewarding and meaningful for them,” he says.

While still guest lecturing, Lasater ultimately found his place working for a prominent architect in Laguna Beach—only a few miles north of The St. Regis Monarch Beach—doing fine home design. He was living an architect’s dream, designing stunning properties in the area’s diverse land. “From craggy cliffs at the water’s edge to rolling hillsides along the canyon rim and in between, we’ve got the flat land and village neighborhoods that link the two extremes together to form a compact but richly varied city,” he says.

Nevertheless, Lasater felt compelled to go out on his own and start a firm. Beginning with a laptop and a small desk in the corner of his bedroom, he admits the experience was a bit daunting, especially with a family to support, but since his move five years ago, Anders Lasater Architects is flourishing. He has enjoyed success including opening his new spacious office in the town’s Lumberyard Center, designing some of the area’s most sought-after homes and retail spaces and, most recently, winning a design award from the prestigious American Institute of Architects.

Lasater says the process of working with a client is both very personal and can also be quite affecting. “You are designing spaces for the private and intimate moments of your clients’ lives tailored just for them,” he says. “In helping them to identify their core needs and balance them against the limits of their resources, I often find myself playing the role of friend, counselor, advocate, moderator, and sometimes, having so much experience with the process, a bit of a dictator.” However, Lasater says that through it all, “I strive to get them the most out of what they have in light of what they need.”

Connecting the Dots
Too often the backyard takes a backseat to interior design. This wasn’t the case for the Gallo residence in Laguna Beach. With this property, Lasater’s client wanted a modern pool and landscape solution that was still complementary to the existing 1930s cottage. Connecting the spirits of the two areas could be a challenge, but in spite of, or perhaps because of the limits, the result was an outdoor space that felt as important as the inside of the home.

Lasater set the tone for the property by mirroring the original house style and material with the new 900-square-foot pool cabana set at 90 degrees to the house to create a backdrop for the pool. The entire side of the cabana was open to the pool with a multi-panel folding glass door, creating a wide indoor-outdoor space. The cabana, at half the size of the existing home, became a transition element for the property so that the crisp geometry of the pool feels in line with the more traditional elements of the house.

The site of the Gallo home drove the design of the project. As a three-lot property, with only the small structures of the cabana and the original home, there is ample open space—which is very unique for Laguna. “We’ve designed lots of outdoor spaces, courtyards and gardens,” Lasater says, “so you never get a sense that the house is small.”

Balancing Act
Just north of gallery row in Laguna Beach is the Fetneh Blake clothing store. The 1,500-square-foot space is an art deco “motor court” apartment from the 1930s. Lasater, who says he has always been fascinated with the juxtaposition of something old against something new, considered the space an exciting opportunity to do just that—inserting something new into an old structure and celebrating the collision of the two. “We jumped at the idea of peeling open the entire facade of the building along the street, of creating a lantern that glowed with a modern vibrancy in the shell of the old structure,” he says. “It’s very satisfying to see our work living alongside that of another architect’s from 70 years ago. You feel as though your work is part of a continuum that exists now, before, and after you’re gone.”

Lasater, who believes that the most important thing to consider, whether designing a home, a retail space or any space is the light, says the Fetneh space provided a challenge because he had to balance the north facing window along the street that brought in a lot of diffused light to just one side of the building. “Light is the best building material we have, but the hardest to master,” he says. To balance the light flowing into the space he relied on including small skylights to the darker side of the store to bring in the brighter direct sun. The effect is an illuminated space that makes the small room feel larger.

From the start, Lasater and the client wanted the space to feel more like a gallery than a store. “The clothing pieces are unique, one-of-a-kind creations that should hang on the walls more as a piece of art, so we created some very custom and unique hanging and lighting solutions,” he says. The design also included recessed openings for smaller objects such as jewelry, shoes and handbags that are placed thoughtfully along the back walls and appear as smaller paintings hung on the wall.

Solving a Challenge
In San Clemente, a short drive south from St. Regis, is the Cornelio house. The slope and configuration of the lot, how it relates to the street, and where the best views are located from the upper level, provided a conundrum for Lasater, who needed to create the kitchen, dining and living rooms at the furthest point from the public entry. The task required that he carefully design a set of experiences for the user as they move from the street, to the entry, into the house and up the stairs, then ultimately into the public rooms at the end of their journey. The spaces were brought together throughout the award-winning designed home with elements like the glass wall that pulls the upper great room and the master bedroom together and allows each to share the views and the sunlight.

Lasater also provided a refreshing update on the single-family home, carving away several outdoor gardens and patios all around the house so that each room has its own accompanying outdoor space. “My favorite is the garden and patio next to the kitchen that sits on the roof of the garage below. Here we’ve got a jungle of fresh herbs, citrus trees and bamboo that create privacy from the neighbors,” he says.

Coming Together
At the end of a narrow street that dead-ends at the edge of a pristine canyon overlooking the coastline of Laguna Beach is the Dillon residence. Lasater’s assignment for this home was simple enough: Form a collection of related but independent structures from the property’s original three small cottages. “The cottages are perfectly sited to take advantage of the sun, views and breezes, so we took our cue from them as we designed the new house,” he says.

Envisioned as a hidden gem nestled within a hillside grove of fragrant eucalyptus, Lasater and his team designed a contemporary retreat that’s open to its surroundings. The result is a residence that mimics the location and orientation of the existing structures to minimize impact on the lot while maximizing the view and sunlight.

The home’s design also invites participation. “With a sequence of tailored experiences, which include living spaces toward the entry, an inner courtyard, a waterfall pool and finally more serene, intimate spaces toward the back of the lot,” Lasater explains.

For Lasater, the challenge of this incredible site was actually the unending views. Making any changes to the site could impede these views for neighbors, which would prove challenging in terms of getting a new house of any size approved through Laguna’s design review process. Lasater saw an opportunity to mitigate the issue by studying the three small cottages that already existed on the lot. 

Breaking the new house down into smaller, distinct parts—a master bedroom suite, great room, guest bedrooms and office—and having them match the location of the existing cottages, he was able to eliminate any view or privacy concerns for the neighbors. The approach also had a bonus, providing an opportunity to mix outdoor spaces among the interior parts of the house and take advantage of the Laguna climate and lifestyle, an advantage that few are blessed with.

Lasater comments, “This house could not be anywhere else, it’s made for this place and this time.”

Design Duo

By OCInSite Site Admin on November 29, 2011 5:32 PM

By Somer Flaherty

For Brooke Ziccardi, style runs in the family. After studying business at USC and design through a UCLA extension program, Brooke started her career the same way most fresh grads do, paying her dues as an assistant. Unlike most newly minted alums, however, Brooke was working for her mother Karen’s well-established interior design firm Ziccardi Designs—think style icon to royalty, international hoteliers and the über wealthy. Eventually she proved herself, working her way up and learning the ropes through various positions including the officelibrarian and project manager before ultimately carving out her place as a partner and principal with the firm.

With a combined 40-plus years of experience, Brooke says their partnership thrives on a balanced design approach, integrating new products and technology with the “sage wisdom of tried and true results and product knowledge,” she says. “And it helps that we enjoy what we do. It’s a pleasure to work with my best friend.”

The two have worked on projects as close as Corona del Mar and as far away as India, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and China—designing golf club houses, private estates, hotels and model home developments.  However, Brooke is quick to point out that seemingly simple projects like working with a young couple, who are trying to merge their styles together for their new home, or creating a nursery for a single-room project, is just as exciting as her international portfolio. “I was born and raised in Newport Beach,” she says. “Local projects are just as interesting to us. I adore this city.”

A recent project in CdM’s Flower Street neighborhood incorporated Brooke’s knowledge of design trends: The 1,000-square-foot home had been left in its original 1950s state until Brooke stepped in, replacing the dated white brick fireplace and incorporating a sleek limestone edition. The clean lines of the fireplace provided just the right framing for a flat-screen TV. “Utilizing a neutral color palette also helped make the home feel more spacious,” she says. “We wanted it to reflect the clean and hip living environment of its surroundings.” Additional touches to the bungalow include new artwork and interior fabrics. influence.

Development by Design

By OCInSite Site Admin on November 23, 2011 7:00 AM

By Sherri Cruz

Who says retail development is stagnant?  Newport Beach is seeing a flurry of ground-up retail projects and renovations, which stand to energize the city and bolster its credentials as a shopping destination. 

Fashion Island is fresh off a $100 million facelift, which enhanced the look of the mall and boosted the overall retail square footage.

Slated to open next year at the gateway to Mariner’s Mile is Mariner’s Pointe, an upscale shopping and dining center: The 19,000-square-foot, two-story center with onsite valet parking is set to be anchored by Winston’s Crown Jewels. “We’re looking at an exciting project that will be the renaissance for Mariner’s Mile,” says former Newport Beach Mayor and developer Tod Ridgeway, owner of Ridgeway Development Company. Laguna Beach-based architect Stoutenborough Inc. designed Mariner’s Pointe to resemble a Mediterranean village.  The center is looking to Los Angeles to recruit top-notch restaurant concepts — possibly a sushi house and a chef-driven restaurant, according to Glenn Verdult, who co-owns the property with his sister Eva. Other possible tenants include a luxury spa and salon and an upscale chocolatier.

Mariner’s Pointe, photo courtesy of Stoutenborough Inc.

The 3,500-square-foot Winston’s Crown Jewels will be a grander version of Glenn’s other store, Winston’s Jewelry in Costa Mesa. “It will be kicked up a level as far as the looks,” says Richard Hammond, who will manage the new store.  The gems will be bigger and the store will have a wider selection of emeralds and other precious stones to choose from. Jewelry pieces will be priced from $5,000 to $5 million.

Next door to Mariner’s Pointe,  well-known NB property owner Russ Fluter spent $200,000 to overhaul an abandoned group of mid-century office buildings. He could’ve torn it down and built a new building, but in a sluggish economy, renovating a building that already had a lot of character was perhaps the best move he could’ve made. 

He leased it in two months. The boutique owners that set up shop in the building designated it The Cove. Many of the tenants design what they sell or make it by hand. At Studio Fringe, interior designer Pam Terry sells home décor including throw pillows and ottomans made of burlap coffee sacks.

If it sparkles, Posey Couture has it. Owner Paige Van Rensselaer-Kunkle sells Swarovski crystal costume jewelry and other girly things. At MerMade Designs, artist Merideth Fleener’s home décor includes coral and seashell mirrors, driftwood crosses and vintage signs. 

Van Rensselaer-Kunkle and Fleener were first to open their stores at The Cove. Through word of mouth, friends, and friends of friends, opened stores there. “It’s been as good as I could’ve hoped for,” Fluter says. “It filled up quickly and I have a group of people that are happy there.”

   
The Cove

On the Balboa Peninsula, spruced up buildings and all-new tenants, many homegrown, have made all the difference at what’s now called The Landing. “We’re very happy with how things have turned out,” says Steve Geary, managing partner of gourmet burger restaurant Crow Burger Kitchen at The Landing. He also owns Crow Bar and Kitchen in Corona del Mar. Geary says the developer made an effort to attract local tenants. “They understood that a neighborhood like that needed local retail.” 

Recruiting retailers with a strong local following brings business to the center, says Sean Whiskeman, vice president for Oakland-based Catellus Development Corp., which has an Irvine office. Other local tenants at The Landing: women’s boutique No Rest for Bridget, which has locations in Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach, and Gina’s Pizza, which has several locations in Orange County. “We really wanted to promote the local flavor,” says Whiskeman. 
National tenants, such as Chase bank and Chipotle Mexican Grill, are part of the mix too.

The Landing, photo courtesy of Todd Quam

Catellus renovated the center all at once because the prior tenant leases expired on the same day. “We thought we could get in there as quickly as possible to renovate the center as a whole.” The renovation began September 2010. Pavilions grocery store, which moved from Via Lido Plaza, was the first tenant at The Landing. It opened in June.

At Newport Bay Marina, a project that will include retail, office and residential space is slated to be built at the former shipyard site at 2300 Newport Blvd. The plan, proposed by Beverly Hills-based Etco Homes Inc., calls for 15,000 square feet of retail below 21,000 square feet of office space. Plans also include a new marina and a public plaza. City officials say Etco Homes is working to secure financing. Company officials couldn’t be reached for comment. 
Perhaps the site with the most promise — and complexity—is the Lido Village area, which consists of Lido Marina Village, Via Lido Plaza, the current city hall site and property opposite Via Oporto. In all, Lido Village encompasses about 17 acres.

The city has put forth an aspirational concept plan for Lido Village, which is available online. The city also is drawing up design guidelines for developers and expects to be finished by year-end. “The idea is to put in place basic planning guidelines that will allow property owners to redevelop their properties economically but consistently with each other,” says Newport Beach Mayor Mike Henn. The relevant parties representing the properties are contributing to the guidelines, he says. “We want their input. The city’s not going to redevelop their property, they are.” The hope for Lido Village is to end up with a consistent look and feel that creates a “sense of place.”

Lido Village

But here’s the tricky part: there are multiple land owners, some who live out of the area, and a variety of interests, especially in the Lido Marina Village, a mostly vacant retail area that fronts the marina.

The city has the most control over what gets built at the city hall site— the biggest parcel within Lido Village—because it’s owned by the city. Newport Beach wants to be ready with a plan when city hall moves at the end of 2012 into the new Civic Center site near the library. It envisions the bulk of the current city hall site to be devoted to housing, but what type of housing has not yet been determined. Plans also call for a public plaza, which would connect with Lido Marina Village, and possibly a pedestrian bridge that would link Mariner’s Pointe to Lido Marina Village.

Via Lido Plaza, owned by Dallas-based Fritz Duda Co., is moving ahead with some redevelopment, Henn says. They’re working on getting a new tenant to replace the Pavilions that moved to The Landing. “Supermarkets are among the tenants they are talking to.” The city anticipates that Fritz Duda will make improvements beyond the former Pavilions building, but no plans have been submitted yet. 

Lido Marina Village owners aren’t ready to move forward with redevelopment right now, Henn says. New York-based Vornado Realty Trust controls most of Lido Marina Village. Some tenants, including Jon Birer, owner of Charlie’s Locker, own their property. Newport Beach-based Davenport Partners manages Lido Marina Village. 

In the future, to be consistent with design guidelines, Lido Marina Village would have ground-floor retail, residential above and perhaps even a small hotel, Henn says. Rebuilt docks and a pedestrian promenade along the water are also part of the plan. 

There’s currently a smattering of retail at Lido Marina Village, including Lido Village Books, Le Bistro restaurant and Blackman Limited Jewelers.

Twice a year during the Lido Yacht Expo and the Newport Boat Show, the place is teeming with people, and on Sundays, a farmers market draws a decent crowd, but otherwise, there isn’t enough retail and dining there to entice customers to show up and stick around. The mostly vacant village lacks a vibe. 

Lido Yacht Expo

Lido Marina Village tenants say the high vacancy is primarily due to the shifting visions for the village under various owners, punctuated by the recession.

Curl Fitness’ Jill Sperry saw promise at Lido Marina Village. She and business partner Becky Hartman recently opened the 13,000-square-foot workout center in a space that was vacant for 13 years. They signed a seven-year lease. “The area’s incredible,” Sperry says. She hopes the facility will become a popular local gym.

Charlie’s Locker, described by its owner as a “nautical Neiman Marcus,” does well at the village because the store has been there for 35 years. “We’re a destination store,” says owner Jon Birer. “If people are going to spend $1 million on their boat they should have a store that outfits them in the proper way,” he says. 

Over the years, he’s seen the area decline. But he’s optimistic. “As far as a piece of property, it’s one of the nicest pieces of property in the world,” he says. “This area needs to be the gem of Newport Beach.”

NB by Design

By OCInSite Site Admin on November 17, 2011 7:30 AM

By Kedric Francis | Photos courtesy of O.C. Archives

When we think of the aesthetics of Orange County, it’s the natural world that comes most immediately to mind—the coast and canyons, the harbors and hillsides, and the bays and beaches. But since the early days when pioneers built wharfs and railroads to reach the sea, design has been crucial to the area’s growth. So here’s a whirlwind look at some of the best design and architecture in the area, from pier to Pavilion and beyond.

Hall Yes! With the new Newport Beach Civic Center and Park now well out of the ground and taking shape, we don’t expect controversy over costs to completely cease. But it’s clear that the center’s design is something to celebrate, and the complex is destined to become one of SoCal’s civic and cultural jewels. Let’s also take a minute to appreciate the existing City Hall. With casual midcentury modernisms like its open-air promenades, it’s been a functional and delightfully understated place that’s representative of old NB, just as much as the new building will evoke the Newport of right now, and its future.

Pier Review Soon after the McFadden Wharf was finished in 1888, a town started to grow around it. The early NB founders’ plans to turn our harbor into a commercial and industrial center to rival San Pedro was foiled — thankfully, we must say. But the basic design from whence Newport Beach grew still exists. The Santa Ana and Newport Beach Railroad line is gone, but you can still see the grand curve of Newport Boulevard where the trains and track ran, ending at the pier. The remnants of it and the Pacific Electric line are visible on a 1940s aerial image.

Island Style Newport Center’s sleek towers from the ’60s sit on the circular Newport Center Drive that surrounds Fashion Island. Designed as part of William Pereira’s master plan for the Irvine Ranch, the expansive layout still feels remarkably modern, with clean lines and largely unadorned towers. The shopping destination at its center has constantly evolved, and is now one of the finest outdoor environments in which to shop and walk in Southern California. And though we’ll admit to missing some of our favorite details that have been removed in recent redesigns (the carousel, the water—popping fountain that kids loved and the triple flying figure statue, to name three), we’re happy that the “largest wind chime in the world” still hangs on the harbor side of the center.

Transit Gloria Newport Beach isn’t a place that’s easy to get around without an automobile, or perhaps a Duffy. At one point in the first half of the last century, one could get from the peninsula to downtown Santa Ana in less than 20 minutes on the Santa Ana and Newport Railroad, and from Balboa to downtown L.A. in about an hour via the Pacific Electric Red Car. Just try that today! But we do still enjoy one of the most pleasant transit experiences in the world: the Balboa Island Ferry. Since 1919, generations have enjoyed this sublime 800-yard journey across the harbor.

Pity the Point? What’s O.C.’s most poorly designed downtown? Here’s a vote for Dana Point. The PCH split bifurcates the commercial center of town (such as it is), and though we keep reading about plans for rehabbing the harbor, these days it’s just sort of sad. The town’s resorts even disown the place: The Ritz-Carlton, which is officially in Dana Point, never relinquished it’s Laguna Niguel suffix, and The St. Regis claims Monarch Beach as its home. But definitely worth a visit in the town is the Ocean Institute, which of course was designed by NB’s own Bauer and Wiley.

NB’s Best Blocks Our favorite street on the peninsula is 31st Street, from the Cannery restaurant to Newport Boulevard. The two blocks form a microcosm of NB’s history, with reminders of the industrial shipbuilding and fishing past (we love the old sail loft behind Alta Coffee and the Quonset huts across the street) mixed in with residential, restaurant (Bear Flag Fish!) and retail uses. It’s grown to its current eclecticism naturally, and should be a model for the future of the neighborhood as grand plans are afoot to link Lido Village and the soon-to-be-vacant City Hall site to Cannery Village and the pier area.

Loving Lovell It’s one of the most important pieces of residential architecture in the world, and it’s sitting right on the NB sand at 13th Street. Designed by Rudolph Schindler and completed in 1926, the Lovell Beach House was recently at the center of the Southern California design world when L.A.’s MAK Center for Art and Architecture hosted tours of the house as part of its Pacific Standard Time exhibit on historian and writer Esther McCoy (makcenter.org). Thanks to the graciousness of the current owner, small groups toured the Beach House in an exceedingly rare opportunity (a visitor from Germany said he’d been waiting 40 years for the chance!) to see the view from within one of modern architecture’s true masterpieces.

Planned Out A place can often be defined by what wasn’t built as much as what was. The corner of Newport Coast and PCH was originally planned and approved to be the site of three 10-story hotels, shops and office buildings, and some recall that Sand Canyon would have connected to around where Crystal Cove Promenade Center is now located, and there would have been another hotel there. Years of negotiations and lawsuits modified the plan to the unique combo of open space, luxury homes and one resort we have now. Other abandoned plans are still more obscure, including the Port of Orange, a 1907 master plan near what is now the Westcliff area of Newport Beach, with a hotel in what is now Castaways Park.

Design Delicacies Not all great design manifests as a brilliant building. NB’s Wonderland Bakery turns out luscious cakes and baked goods with divine designs that are the equal of anything on food television shows.

Fixed Up The SoCo Center is doing something we would have thought impossible: turning a disaster of a design center into something truly cool. The OC Mart Mix is evolving into a place worthy of the “Ferry Building” connections drawn in the marketing, and the grand new Fixture store takes kitchen design to a stunning new level.

Battle of the Titans What’s the most successful master plan in all of O.C.? Ladies and gentlemen, we give you the land of Disney vs. the villages of the Irvine Company. May the best
mega-mind win.

Positively Pelican Following design principles of Palladian architecture, the Resort at Pelican Hill approaches perfection in its primary purpose: providing privacy for guests. With luxurious bungalows and villas set apart from the spa, lobby and Andrea restaurant, guests need never see each other. And that seems to suit the resort’s upscale international clientele (think royalty, whether from Hollywood or elsewhere) just fine: The resort is the first in Southern California to be named the No. 1 resort in the U.S. by readers of Condé Nast Traveler magazine.

California Cool  For anyone who loves design, especially of the midcentury modern variety, the California Design exhibit at L.A. County Museum of Art is a must-see. Part of the Pacific Standard Time group of shows at SoCal museums, the LACMA exhibit is so beautiful, it almost hurts. And there are some Orange County connections, including lovely architectural renderings of the homes at Monarch Bay.

Divine Dine Of the new restaurants in O.C., Katsuya probably is the most hyped from a design standpoint. And we are impressed—Philippe Starck, and all that. But the dark horse for best new restaurant design is Three Seventy Common in Laguna Beach. It’s understated and comfortable, with no “look at me” moves. With its new, clean design, we find the transformation of the well-worn space (formerly Sorrento Grill) very cool. Other favorite O.C. restaurant designs include True Food, CrowBurger, Stonehill Tavern, Anqi, Copper Door, Taco Asylum and Marché Moderne.

South Coast Fab South Coast Plaza and the Segerstrom Center for the Arts form one of the most important centers for design culture in California. The artists, architects and designers who are represented in the area would form a who’s who list of legendary figures from the past century. But what it’s been missing for the past few years is a bookstore worthy of the place (and no, the hardly missed Borders doesn’t count). Enter Assouline: It’s a temple to all things aesthetic, with gift books and coffee- table tomes on fashion, art, automobiles, travel and most of the other things that make life worth living.

NB’s Best Buildings Among the most architecturally significant structures in Newport Beach are The Balboa Pavilion; the Price residence in CdM, designed by Bart Prince; Mariners Medical Arts building, designed by Richard Neutra; the Lovell Beach House; and the John Lautner-designed Rawlins House on Balboa Island.

Crystal Vision The battle over the architecturally iconic Crystal Cathedral campus rages on. Our solution? Chapman University acquires the property and opens SoCal’s greatest grad school of architecture, perhaps in conjunction with SciArc or another established school. Build a SoCal architecture museum amid the designs of Richard Neutra, Richard Meier and Philip Johnson, lease out the cathedral for services, and suddenly O.C. is a world center of architecture and design.

NB’s Worst Buildings We asked around, and we looked ourselves. And although it’s true that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, architects, aesthetes and design aficionados find these local buildings particularly annoying: the brick parking structure at Lido Village; Triangle Square; the new lifeguard headquarters on the sand at El Morro State Park; the triumphal arches at the entrance to Newport Coast; the massive Monarch Building lofts on 32nd Street; and the vacant building on PCH and Jasmine blocking the view of the Brown Building in CdM.

NB Hidden Design Gems Not all of the interesting architecture in Newport Beach comes with a famous designer, historic relevance or prestigious provenance attached. A few design bright spots that fill in around the ordinary edges include the angular Brown Building that sits a half a block back from PCH in Corona del Mar, near Baja Fresh; the rustic beauty of the Brownell Architects office that sits on Mariner’s Mile across from the Newport Sea Base; the Goldenrod Bridge that links CdM to the sea for Flower Street pedestrians; the Stradas of Lido Island; the Sandcastle condos on Avocado; and the midcentury modern office building at 446 Old Newport Blvd., which always makes us do a double take.

Internationally Inspired

By Ashley Breeding on November 12, 2011 7:00 AM

Photos By Larry A. Falke, Falke Photography

When Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (better known as Le Corbusier), architect and pioneer of International style, said, “The house is a machine for living in,” he was referring to a new type of housing that fit the industrial age. This led to a design that was rectilinear, spacious, simplistic and devoid of ornamentation. He used modern materials like steel, plated glass and reinforced concrete, and employed cantilever construction to help create a visually weightless aesthetic.

A contemporary interpretation of this style, where privacy was a sine qua non, is what the Cormac family was seeking when they hired NB-based Laidlaw Schultz Architects to design their home, a 3,548 square-foot compound nestled in the hillside of Corona del Mar’s Harbor View Hills neighborhood.

Both open and intimate, the pavilion-style home separates public from private with a solid sandstone façade and sliding metal gate that leads to the interior courtyard and personal domain, says Craig Schultz, AIA, the project’s leading architect.

Continuing this theme of open seclusion, a path from the entryway to the ocean-view hillside divides the personal spaces from the main living room and interior courtyard.

A spectacular feature of the project, indoor-outdoor living, is reflected in the outside living space, adjacent swimming pool and lounge, as well as mirror imagery and repetition of shapes, textures and materials throughout the interior and exterior.

Having just come through the sliding metal gate, the forecourt reveals the entry hall, kitchen and view in the distance.

The skylit back hall transitions seamlessly into the master suite and the storage closets become the primary master closet. Within the master bedroom, a television is hidden beneath the wooden floor, allowing for a more expansive space while comfortably stowed below. A brick backlit wall repeats the entry hallways materiality, adding to the light, texture and flow throughout the home.

In keeping with the indoor-outdoor theme, the sandstone pavers in the master bathroom flooring are also used outside. The shedua wood cabinetry is cantilevered off the tile wall, mimicking the exterior brick. This same brick wall creates a light pocket to create indirect lighting. The opposite wall is composed of lacquered cabinetry and a freestanding tub anchors the space.

Following Le Corbusier’s law that “all buildings should be white,” Schultz deployed the color in painted brick, striated marble and smooth plaster to create textural interest.

The cool aesthetic is juxtaposed by warm walnut paneling, doors and windows, and aged wood flooring to “balance sophistication and warmth,” Schultz explains.

Challenges the design team faced, including height restrictions that forbid obstruction of both existing and potential views, ultimately led to some of the project’s most desired details: split-levels within the home, the development of an outdoor living area, and an enlarged courtyard.

Many of these elements incorporated within the design are familiar to Schultz, whose portfolio stretches as far as Sun Valley, Idaho, and whose recent local work includes The Crossing Church, Port Theater and facilities at Fox Studios.
“While each project that we are involved with is specifically designed for the needs of that client, I think that many aspects of the Cormac home can be seen throughout our other work,” Schultz says.

The team’s careful attention to detail, polished palette and unique concept earned the project the Honor Award at the recent American Institute of Architects’ Residential Awards competition.

A “minimal aesthetic that would also suit a growing family” is the concept applied to the Cormac home, Schultz says. The couple’s international roots (Colin Cormac is South African; his wife, Carolina, is Argentinean) and cultural experiences, he says, brought a supremely sophisticated knowledge to the design process: “Their dedication to the project helped bring out the very best in the architecture, and their understanding of the importance of each aspect of the home helped in carrying out everything from the largest features of the home to the smallest detail.”

The view of the pavilion from the outdoor living room enhances the feel of indoor-outdoor living. An overhead trellis’ shadows mimic the horizontal windows at the entry, and walnut warms the lift-and-slide doors.

Once through the “sentry” wall, an outdoor forecourt acts as an entry vestibule for the residence. An oversized pivoting door unexpectedly reveals the views through the home that no one would suspect from the street approach. A painted brick wall continues the exterior texture of the building quietly reinforcing the indoor-outdoor quality of the home, with sand- stone pavers seamlessly continuing from outside to in.

The Art of Design

By OCinSite At-Large on June 28, 2011 10:55 AM

Tropical modernism inspires local architect Carlton Graham.

By Somer Flaherty | Laguna Beach Magazine, June/July 2011

Architect Carlton Graham always loved design based on warm climates. The Laguna Beach resident, who went to high school in Hawaii, took art classes for many years to explore his passion for drawing and painting. But when he realized he wouldn’t be able to make a living doing it, he decided that architecture would be the perfect fusion of both art and business. He graduated from one of the top architecture programs in the nation at the University of Texas and then headed to Southern California. “Once I found Laguna, I left L.A. and began working with local architects like Mark Singer and Horst Noppenberger before starting my own practice,” Carlton says.

Laguna Beach Magazine: What do you love about being an architect in Laguna?
Carlton Graham: The opportunity to design homes that open up to our climate and blend with nature. There are not too many places in the country where you get both.

LBM: How do you work with clients to build their dream home?
CG: I start by spending time just getting to know them and how they live. Next, I like to see their current home to get more insight into who they are. Finally, we sit down and go through a process of looking at their scrapbook of pictures, ideas and their wish list. At that point, I have a good understanding of what they want and I begin to put pencil to paper. I start by sketching big ideas and concepts, and gradually the concepts get more detailed through client meetings. I try to focus on listening. My job is to try and interpret what they want.

LBM: Tell us about your own home—did you design it?
CG: I live in a relatively small home near Top of the World designed in the ’50s by an architect who worked for Frank Lloyd Wright. By the time I bought the home, it was hard to see the potential behind years of neglect and bad renovations. I gutted the place down to the studs and completely renovated the house. I was careful not to enlarge the footprint and tried to stay true to the original concept. The house is very open with great light and lots of floor-to-ceiling windows. The house has wonderful views of the trees, mountains and ocean. It’s small and feels like a modern tree house.

LBM: What was the most interesting project you’ve worked on here?
CG: A large, custom oceanfront home in Irvine Cove. The project is on a double lot. This gave me an opportunity to break the building up into a series of smaller pavilions surrounded by private courtyards. Two of the buildings are covered with planted roofs. The project is very organic, more like something you would find in Big Sur.

LBM: If big space isn’t an option, how do you suggest a person maximizes it?
CG: Trust your architect and interior designer to maximize your space. I would say less really is more. It’s not about square footage. Clients always want a bigger house. However, if the floor plan is laid out well a 2,000-square-foot home can live much bigger. Focus on simplicity and quality materials.

LBM: What is one trend you are seeing in Laguna home design?
CG: The move to go green. It seems to be a hot topic that everyone is asking about. Solar power, paints and stains without harsh chemicals and the use of sustainable hardwoods.

LBM: Any favorite inspirations outside of Laguna?
CG: I am always inspired by Bali and tropical modernism. These buildings tend to use a lot of glass and typically have large sliding doors that open the interior to the elements. Courtyards, gardens and water features are also typical of the tropics. For the most part, the climate in Laguna is pretty mild so I tend to use some of the same concepts in my work.

LBM: Are there any dream projects you’d like to work on here?
CG: I have such great clients and projects right now. I am working on a new custom oceanfront house that is pretty much a dream. However, I have always wanted to redesign the Laguna Art Museum or do a ground-up boutique hotel on the beach.

LBM: What makes your business stand out?
CG: I have a small boutique firm and I only take on two to three projects a year. I keep my overhead low, which allows me to be very selective about the projects I take on. I am very hands-on and personally draw and oversee all my projects. Most architects have larger firms and things typically get delegated to a draftsman in the office. My work is highly detailed and I tend to use more raw and natural materials. For example, I don’t use much paint. I like wood to look like wood not plastic.

LBM: If you weren’t an architect you’d be a ...
CG: Photographer.

LBM: One word to describe Laguna style:
CG: Carefree.

Design at Home: Tropical Chic

By OCinSite At-Large on

PALISADE CEILING MOUNT FAN, available at Tuvalu, 295 Forest Ave. (949-497-3202; tuvaluhome.com)

By Somer Flaherty | Laguna Beach Magazine, June/July 2011

Grab a mai tai and relax. You don’t have to travel to the South Seas to indulge in tropical design. Transform your home into its own pristine enclave (ocean view or not) with subtle design influences big on natural materials, kitschy classics or airy island flair. 

KEEL FISH SURFBOARD, available at Thalia Surf Shop (915 S. Coast Hwy.; 949-497-3292; thaliasurf.com)

OUTDOOR DAY BED, available at Modern Studio Furnishings (290 Broadway St.; 949-376-0103; modernstudiofurnishings.com)

PINEAPPLE SALT AND PEPPER SHAKERS, available at Tommy Bahama (400 S. Coast Hwy.; 949-376-6881; tommybahama.com)

PROTEA PARADISE ARRANGEMENT, available at Stems Fabulous Flowers (998 S. Coast Hwy., Ste. C; 800-248-1351; stemsflowers.com)

Dispatches From a Worldly Designer

By OCinSite At-Large on May 05, 2011 9:03 AM

Arianna Noppenberger

By Somer Flaherty | Laguna Beach Magazine, May 2011

As an unhappy law school graduate, Arianna Noppenberger was ready for a career change. Still living in Italy at the time, she enrolled in the interior architectural program at one of the best private schools in the area—the Instituto Europeo di Design. The budding designer didn’t just fall in love with a new career, she also found her now-husband, architect Horst Noppenberger. The two moved to California a few years later and Arianna began developing the interiors of his projects. Eventually she was able to branch off and start her own interior design firm, Laguna Beach’s Aria Design, which fittingly sits in a building designed by her husband.

Laguna Beach Magazine: Tell us about your office in Laguna Beach.
Arianna Noppenberger: I opened my own studio at 247 Forest Avenue after looking for years for the perfect space. The building burned down in 1998 and my husband redesigned it, exposing the original brickwork. He blended the old and new using glass canopies, skylights and exposing wood beams. I love being in my office—it has high ceilings, lots of natural light, restaurants in front and is walking distance to the beach! Only in Laguna can I have all this at my doorstep.

LBM: You were born and raised in Italy but have worked in Laguna Beach for years, how does that inspire your designs?
AN: I lived and worked in buildings built many centuries ago in downtown Bologna, Italy. When I moved to Laguna, I immediately felt the lightness and the beauty of living in contact with nature within such a great climate. I found this community a fresh open environment where I could experiment and be innovative.

It’s inspired me to design homes with open floor plans connected to the outdoors, allowing a life in close contact with the natural beauty and topography of the place.

LBM: How would you describe Laguna Beach home design?
AN: Modern, minimal, sustainable and tactile with a natural, lived-in feel, earth palette of colors, materials and textures.

LBM: What do you love about working here?
AN: Laguna attracts people from all over the world. I enjoy working with clients of ethnic and cultural diversity. This allows each of my projects to be unique and for me to evolve as a designer.

LBM: What is your favorite thing about Laguna style?
AN: People generally associate Laguna with the cottage style, but if we really look around we’ll discover that our town is very eclectic when it comes to styles. This is what makes Laguna so unique. It is a community that promotes diversity and I hope it always will.

LBM: What’s the first question you ask a client?
AN: I don’t have a first question or a set questionnaire. I find myself listening more than asking. During the design process the interactions with the client lead me to discover their personalities, desires, preferences and dislikes.

LBM: What are some of your favorite textures?
AN: The ones found in nature.

LBM: What’s your biggest design pet peeve?
AN: Anything that is a bad replica of styles of the past, for example, the use and abuse of what is called Mediterranean style in our area!

Unique by Design

By OCinSite At-Large on May 03, 2011 10:14 AM

Ohara Davies-Gaetano

By Somer Flaherty | Newport Beach Magazine, May 2011

You could say design is in the genes for Ohara Davies-Gaetano. The Newport Beach resident grew up in New York City surrounded by the arts—her father was a painter and her mother worked in textile design. However, it was during her travels throughout Central America and Europe that she developed what she calls an “appreciation for unique and unusual elements.” As the head designer of local residential design firm Bliss Design, Ohara says she takes inspiration for her projects from the nature of our coastal community.

Newport Beach Magazine: You grew up surrounded by the arts, but when did your focus shift to interior design?
Ohara Davies-Gaetano: I was hired as a retail design consultant back in 1999 to redesign a retail showroom in Atlanta. A few months into the project, a client came into the store and inquired about design services for her home, and from that day forward my focus has been residential interior design.

NBM: What is your favorite thing about Newport style?
ODG: I really appreciate that our clients truly love design and want their homes to reflect great design. This understanding of beauty, allows me to truly do a great job.

NBM: Many people struggle with a cluttered space, any suggestions for improvement?
ODG: When we grow tired of a space, it can be hard to realize how to improve it because we are so accustomed to seeing it day in and day out. Empty the room, move things around, re-think the layout and change the paint. Take away the small pieces that are cluttering the home and bring in new accessories and artwork but on a larger scale, creating more of a dramatic impact.

NBM: Tell us about designing a kids’ room.
ODG: A children’s room can prove to be the most challenging since kids’ tastes can vacillate from one day to the next. I always ask to sit down with the kids and ask them similar questions that I would of their parents. My goal with a kids’ room is to design it so that the space embraces their spirit, but can grow and evolve with them as their taste changes.

NBM: What’s a recent project you’ve worked on in Newport?
ODG: I just did an incredible bay front remodel. The design of the home was Balinese-inspired with traces of Morocco and Old World India. I wanted to make sure that the home felt true to its origin, not contrived in any way. In order to accomplish this the use of materials was crucial. I found old architectural elements like doors and archways that were used throughout and hand-painted tiles that we used to bring color into the bathrooms.

NBM: What is your favorite room to design?
ODG: An amazing dining room can be my favorite room in a home. The space should feel like a jewel box: intimate, alluring, romantic, comfortable, a space you want to lounge around in for hours. The walls need to have beautiful tone or texture, the chandelier needs to be incredible, candles are important for creating the allure, fresh flowers always, and comfortable seating that hugs you is crucial.

NBM: If you had to choose, what’s your biggest design pet peeve?
ODG: I am not a big fan of matchy-matchy. A home needs soul and in order to accomplish this, there needs to be a sense of understanding and appreciation for the use of different elements.

Fab Pre-Fab

By OCinSite At-Large on April 07, 2011 12:21 PM

Scott Mayoral Photography

By Ted Reckas

Greg Brown walks down Seashore Drive in a hard hat, with a stack of pizzas and a big smile. He is a happy man who bought lunch for the crew that just built his house, a block off the beach in Newport. And they literally just built it. They started at 8 a.m., and it’s already done.

The green modular home, which came in four pieces on trucks, was lifted into place by a crane, dropped in between the neighbors’ houses, with a few feet to spare. A small crowd gathered to watch—it’s not every day you see a house suspended in midair.

The home is Orange County’s first LEED Platinum-certified home, the highest recognized designation, and the third of its kind built by LivingHomes, a Santa Monica development firm. At the home’s installation last fall, founder Steve Glenn and Amy Sims, one of the architects, watched and directed when needed as workers moved around under a suspended module that would flatten them all if it dropped. Steve, Amy and their team chat like flying houses are as normal as pancakes for breakfast.

Technically Speaking
Born in Mexico City, Steve is veteran of the tech industry—he started Clearview software and sold it to Apple, then started eToys, Citysearch and six other companies that have since gone public. His circuitous route to LivingHomes started in college.

“I thought I might go into design so I did a summer program and there I learned I had neither the talent or temperament to be an architect, but I learned about developers,” Steve said. He was particularly impressed by Jim Rouse, a mid-century American developer, and concluded the world could use more responsible developers like him.

The first green, modular home Steve built was his own, in Santa Monica in 2006. It was based on the Z6 principle: zero energy, zero water, zero waste, zero carbon and zero emissions. Of the last Z, zero ignorance, Steve says, “You can do a lot to make a green home, but if the people who live in the home aren’t responsible about their resource use…”  Steve pauses for a second, allowing silence to fill in the blank. “…So we do some things to make people more aware,” he finishes.

Greg is aware. When asked why he’s doing this, he says, “We’re showing people that it can be done. We should start thinking about our environment and what we’re doing. Building is probably the hugest issue, particularly commercial building. If people would make that choice…I’m not somebody who believes in the whole, uh, Al Gore, global warming and all that, but I do believe that we waste way too many resources and—”

Hang on. This guy doesn’t believe in global warming?

“I don’t think there’s enough evidence saying that’s going on,” he explains. “Are we wasting resources? Absolutely. Does that have some effect on our environment? Yes, it does. Should we pay attention? Yeah. I absolutely think we should be paying attention, and doing everything we can, and I think everybody has to take some responsibility in that.”

Impressing the Neighbors
Joanne and Miles Larson have lived next door since 1962, when their house was beachfront and there were train tracks in place of Seashore Drive. The Larsons agree with Greg. “We’re delighted to have them as neighbors,” Joanne says. “I would like it if it looked more beachy, but it’s going to be the way of the future. There’s no question about it. We can’t keep filling up our landfills.”

Scott Mayoral Photography

Steve rattles off features of the house, keeping one eye on the crane gently swinging a several-ton module into an amazingly tight space between houses. “For energy, a lot of insulation, special high performance windows, fluorescent lighting, super energy efficient appliances. And this home will have photo panels, photovoltaics, to produce power,” he says.

Instead of demolishing the lot’s previous home, LivingHomes deconstructed it and donated about 70 percent of the materials to Habitat for Humanity. In fact, most of the materials used in the modular home are recycled or reclaimed. The steel that frames the building is made of recycled cars, and the wood is engineered out of wood parts and pieces. The cladding is from recycled bamboo and other materials, while the tile is from recycled glass. All the water fixtures are low flow, Kohler fixtures, and the bathroom has dual-flush toilets and special fans that vent out moisture that can cause mold.

While listing these impressive features, Steve has yet to take a breath, giving the impression that he’s been bringing everyone around him up to speed for a long time. And there are only so many hours in the day. Hence, homes you can build in an afternoon.

Clean Start
Greg feels an important feature of the house is its clean internal environment. “One of the things I’m interested to find out is to compare living here with living in the other house—how we’ll feel in the house because everything that has been used in here is very health-friendly.”

This house has none of the toxic glues, formaldehyde or other chemicals common to many building materials. Even the bar stools are made with recycled seat belts. Which makes you wonder—would anyone buy homes or furniture if they knew they were exuding toxins? After spending a few months in the house, Greg shares his feelings about the home: “We have noticed it’s different, he says. “It seems like the air is … there’s no real tone to it. There’s no smell to it. It feels cleaner.”

Greg says his children—twins Davis and Madison—also like the modular home. “My kids won’t say it in front of me necessarily, but they think its pretty cool that it’s at least moving toward an environmental house,” he says. “Of course, it’s by the beach, which doesn’t hurt.”

The Discipline of Green
Greg and his wife Stacey saw Steve’s design at the TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) conference in Long Beach in January, 2008. They bought it three months later. At Greg’s other home in Dover Shores, the house is filled with LED light bulbs and a timer stuck to the tile in the shower.

“After five minutes you have to get out,” he says. “You have to be disciplined.” He tried to install solar panels at the home years ago. The orientation of the house was wrong, so it wouldn’t work, but that’s not the point. He’s an innovator. “I’ve always been that way,” Greg says, “It’s part of my DNA.”

While soft-spoken, Greg is a man of action. In addition to coaching freshman basketball at Newport Harbor High School, he’s the Orange County Director for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and runs his promotional products company, PromoSeen. His search for eco-friendly promotional products is what turned him on to LivingHomes.

Scott Mayoral Photography

When asked if he thinks one day every house in the neighborhood will be like his, Greg is pragmatic. “I don’t know about here, but somewhere, definitely. I don’t think soon. These things take a long time. I think it’s probably, 10 to 20 years out. They’re not super expensive, but they’re not really cheap. Until they get really, really cheap I just don’t think you’ll see them en masse.”

The cost of the homes ranges from $275-$400 per square foot. “We are around $325,” Greg says of his 2,000-square-foot dwelling. “Not much different from normal home in Newport Beach.”
Greg said he hopes green building becomes the standard in the future.

“I think in the Netherlands that it has just become a normal thing,” Greg says. “You do X because that’s all that’s available.”

The bottom line for Greg is looking forward. “I think it’s a good example for my kids to see that you can do something like this,” he says. “And hopefully other people see it and say, ‘We can do it too.’ Why not be the way of the future?”