flexiblefullpage -
Currently Reading

Design Details: Above the Fray

Advertisement
billboard -
Design Details

Design Details: Above the Fray

In a densely populated Seattle neighbor­hood, two adjacent infill sites were developed: The Lookout and Shake Shacks


By Stacey Freed September 14, 2021
Shake shacks was built by hybrid architecture in seattle and featured on Custom Builder
This article first appeared in the CB Fall 2021 issue of Custom Builder.

Access to fresh air and daylight in an urban environment can be particularly challenging. Building up is a simple answer. Hybrid, a firm with four distinct but interconnected studios—design, build, develop, and space (a pop-up gallery)—aims to build affordable, sustainable living spaces in the Seattle market and differentiates its designs by focusing on details that make its homes unique.

In a densely populated Seattle neighbor­hood, the firm developed two adjacent infill sites: The Lookout, a single-family home elevated above three parking spaces, and Shake Shacks, three cedar-clad townhomes.

Natural light in rooftop room adjacent to enclosed outdoor space

Hybrid’s founding partner and design principal, Robert Humble, designs projects with an inverted floor plan to maximize air and light. “Elements are stacked vertically to take advantage of the smaller footprint of tight urban sites,” says development manager Alex Herbig, who has worked with Humble for near three years. The first floor typically has one or two bedrooms or flex rooms, with the main living space on the floor above. Then, above that, Hybrid incorporates a roof deck, essentially putting the backyard on the roof.

In The Lookout, a horizontal band of win­dows above a narrow kitchen backsplash helps amp up the amount of daylight and makes the space feel larger. Putting the kitchen and living space on the second floor “makes it feel as if residents are in a tree fort,” Herbig says.

The windows are standard double-pane vinyl and in the corner where two windows meet, a metal casing covers the framing.


the lookout home was designed by hybrid architecture in seattle

Views were an important consideration in designing The Lookout. The kitchen’s long, linear window wraps the corner to provide a picture-perfect view of downtown Seattle (Photos: Rafael Soldi).


“We set this corner back, and the dimensions are 2 by 4, so it’s a little shallower,” Herbig says, noting that the walls are 2 by 6. “It’s then capped in metal to match the windows and make it feel as if the windows are ganged together—which isn’t possible without structural steel framing.” The outcome is a clean, modern aesthetic at a much lower cost.

The Lookout in SeattleThe Lookout stands above three parking spaces.

The Shake Shacks’ rooftops go beyond functional. Often, rooftop decks are flat, “but in Seattle, while it can be a sunny day, you can’t be up on the roof deck for more than 10 minutes before you’re cooked­—or it’s windy and cold,” Herbig says. The Shake Shacks’ 12-foot-by-12-foot rooftop decks are open on one side and tuck into a vaulted area over the living room, allowing for privacy and shelter. Solar panels drape the other side of the roof.

Kitchen with a lookout viewIn The Lookout, a horizontal band of win­dows above a narrow kitchen backsplash helps amp up the amount of daylight and makes the space feel larger. Putting the kitchen and living space on the second floor “makes it feel as if residents are in a tree fort.

As for rain, water makes its way along the sloped roof membrane and heads to a scupper box where it filters down the gutters to bio-retention wells along the building’s perimeter. The necessity of water collection and distribution on dense urban sites is often viewed as strictly utilitarian, but Hybrid sees water management as an opportunity to further elevate the building’s design.


Projects

The Lookout and Shake Shacks, Seattle

Architect

Hybrid Architecture, Seattle

Builder

Hybrid Assembly

Related Stories

Custom Builder

2023: A Year of Case Studies

A look back at the custom homes and craftsman details we spotlighted last year

Construction

Building a Custom Wine Cube in an NYC Penthouse

An 11-foot wine cube enveloping a pantry is the stand out features of this customized West Chelsea penthouse

Design

A Multigenerational Mountain Retreat With a Custom Bunk Room

With aging-in-place amenities and a spacious bunk room, this legacy mountain retreat is designed to be enjoyed for generations to come

Design

An Indoor-Outdoor Fireplace That Preserves Livable Space

This cost-effective, space-saving fireplace is designed to entertain both indoors and out 

 

Architecture

Space-Saving Helix Stairs for an East Village Apartment

These custom winding stairs in architect James Wagman’s “Heavy Metal” project actually aren’t made from metal at all…

Design

Lateral Thinking for a Custom Vertical Fireplace

This one-of-a-kind fireplace takes modern design to new heights

 

Design

A Mount St. Helens Retreat With a Grand Entryway

Situated on Yale Lake beneath Mount St. Helens, this neomodern vacation home is designed to look like a rustic mountain lodge, and central to that style is its vaulted entryway finished with natural wood and stone

Design

Stepping Into Lake Minnetonka Luxury

This Wayzata Bay custom home features an arched portico entryway with a few unique architectural touches

Design

This 2-In-1 Swimming Pool Isn’t What It Seems

A front-to-back walkway connects two swimming pools outside of this waterfront Florida home

Design Details

An Open-Air Balcony That Functions Like a Birdcage

The oceanfront porch on this Alys Beach home opens to expansive views of the Gulf Coast

Advertisement
boombox1 -
Advertisement
boombox2 -
Advertisement
boombox3 -
Advertisement
native1 -

More in Category

Custom Builder

2023: A Year of Case Studies

A look back at the custom homes and craftsman details we spotlighted last year

Construction

Building a Custom Wine Cube in an NYC Penthouse

An 11-foot wine cube enveloping a pantry is the stand out features of this customized West Chelsea penthouse

boombox4 -
Design

A Multigenerational Mountain Retreat With a Custom Bunk Room

With aging-in-place amenities and a spacious bunk room, this legacy mountain retreat is designed to be enjoyed for generations to come

Design

An Indoor-Outdoor Fireplace That Preserves Livable Space

This cost-effective, space-saving fireplace is designed to entertain both indoors and out   

boombox4 -
Advertisement
native2 -
Advertisement
halfpage1 -