Hemlock Alley Cottage
Portland, Oregon 2012
The owners of this 1940s era tract house and property located in the historic Ladd’s Addition Neighborhood of Southeast Portland, sought planning and zoning assistance in navigating the Conservation Design Overlay Guidelines for a new detached addition. In initial design phases, multiple conceptual layout options were explored and discussed to test out which of the compact layouts would best meet the clients’ needs for this small second home.
Ideas included maintaining strong privacy and autonomy from the existing residence and neighboring property owners, providing privacy from the alley entry through an exterior entry court, and using vegetation to create a small garden and covered patios. The result at the interior included a common kitchen-dining-living zone, a room at the ground level that could be used for sleeping or as an office, and a multi-use loft zone at the second level with a south facing private deck.