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Floor Plan of Cabañas Foráneo by Avon Arquitectos

The floor plan of the upper level after the renovation.

Floor plan of House 097 by Fala

The new lower level makes space for guests and the owners' two children to have privacy.

Before: Modus Development bought the 1921 house in Highland Park in 2021, for its proximity to York Blvd and walking distance to Occidental College.

The front of the house is the back of the boathouse garage, with the front door opening onto a small foyer and half-bath before a stairway to the main living area.

One of the boathouse's two bedrooms can accommodate up to four adults or children, thanks to a quartet of bunk beds beside a wall of glass.

The primary bedroom windows frame up-close views of the boulders on the site.

A cedar-clad ceiling emphasizes the dramatic volumes of the combined living spaces, and the windows bring in the “dappled light” from the trees, says Rogers. The new plan makes entertaining much easier for the couple, with easy flow from the interiors to the roof deck and yard.

The new foyer is designed after a Japanese Genkan, and ensures the entry is clearly delineated from the rest of the house. The wood of the bottom stair forms the bench for sitting and removing shoes.

The addition was shifted into the trees so that it doesn’t overwhelm the site. That also gives the main living spaces a treehouse-like feel when gazing out from inside.

The original home was converted into a bedroom level, and given a second-story addition and roof deck. The dark exterior color, a charcoal-eggplant hue, lets the landscape colors stand out in contrast. “The existing house roof became the roof deck,” says Rogers. “And then I just shifted over the addition so that it floated over the landscape.”

The main entrance is at the bright orange door. Sogno Design Group worked to preserve the site’s natural characteristics as much as possible, thus the addition “floats” over the landscape in places.

The couple worked with Sogno Design Group to expand the cottage by over 1000 square feet, adding an upper level and roof deck, and an independent suite with its own entrance for Erica’s mom (the charcoal door seen to the right).