The Cedar Park responds directly to the predicament posed by the site – that its most desirable location is also its most fragile. It takes advantage of the prospect afforded by a steep site, while at the same time strengthening the fragile slope, collecting the water that threatens to de-stabilize it and minimizing the energy required to do so. The building is formed by the interaction of site-cast concrete walls and water-collecting roofs. At the same time the transparency of the house creates a seamless spatial experience, connecting inside and out.
Two concrete walls mark the site and define its major exterior and interior spaces. The first follows the long northern boundary, cupping at the end to form an outdoor hearth. The second parallels the first, until it bends in the middle and angles to the southeast. Together they form a Y that opens to the east. The walls become a datum against which the slope of the site is measured, growing to eleven feet tall at the entry portal.
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