Del Mar Heights
This new multi-family development speaks as much to the architectural heritage of Pasadena as to contemporary design. The project includes 20 condominiums (4 flats and 16 townhomes) in two separate 3-story buildings, and two levels of subterraean parking. All units include balconies or patios. The neighborhood is an eclectic mix of various architectural styles and attracts a wide range of residents as it’s within blocks of the city college and Cal Tech.
The restrained detailing on the facade allows the focus to be on materials which were chosen for their warmth, texture, and subdued palette. Steel troweled stucco in silver grey is accented with stone tile veneer, brushed silver architectural panels, eaves of paulope wood, and Rheinzink metal coping.
Status: Design Phase Size: 54,000 s.f. Architectural Team: Rocky Rockefeller, AIA, Christopher Kempel, AIA, Keith Ireland, AIAThis simple builder’s house was built in the 1940s and a poorly conceived addition in the 1960s drastically altered its appearance. The firm's assignment was to keep the existing foundation and structure but change its aesthetic and spatial configuration. The owners had lived in this beach-side community most of their lives and were hoping to achieve something that felt less like a house by the beach, and more like a beach house. With this in mind, the architects created a home with a stronger connection to the outdoors, bathed in natural light, informal, and very comfortable.
Status: Completed in 2000
Project Size: 3,500 s.f.
Architectural Team: Rocky Rockefeller, AIA, Brian Pera, Christopher Kempel, AIA, Peter Rittner, Anna Gay Del Vescova
Inheriting the project from a client frustrated with their former architect, rPA was called upon to salvage a design that wasn’t theirs. Using the formerly established programmatic arrangement, rPA adjusted and improved a design that initially lacked order and balance. The project was carried through construction documents in record time. The result was a pragmatic and attractive arrangement that skillfully maneuvered a compact and steep site.
Status: Under Construction
Project Size: 3,953 s.f.
Architectural Team: Christopher Kempel, AIA, Rocky Rockefeller, AIA,
Keith Ireland, AIA, Anthony Laney