A Quiet House in the Hills

Perched on a sloping site, this residence turns a difficult grade into an advantage. The house steps down the hillside in three quiet volumes, each opening to a different view—ridge, valley, sky. Solid walls face the street; glass faces the landscape. Inside, a single continuous stair links every level, so the family moves through the home as one connected space rather than a stack of separate floors.

Materials were kept deliberately few: board-formed concrete, white oak, and blackened steel. Concrete anchors the house to the slope and holds the thermal mass; oak warms every surface you touch; steel frames the views without competing with them. Nothing was added for decoration. Every material earns its place by doing a job.

Light as Material

Light was treated as a building material from day one. Deep roof overhangs shade the glass in summer; low winter sun reaches the concrete floors and releases heat at night. A central skylight drops daylight into the stair core, so the middle of the house never depends on artificial light during the day.

Living with the Slope

Rather than flatten the site, the design follows it. Retaining walls double as garden terraces; the lower level opens onto a shaded court. Stormwater moves slowly across planted roofs before release. The house sits lightly on the land, working with the grade instead of fighting it—proof that a difficult site can become the project's strongest idea.