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Less than a block from their popular and groundbreaking Colorado
Court Apartments in downtown Santa Monica, Pugh
+ Scarpa Architects have created another complex that raises
the bar for design for the other 98%. Step Up on Fifth features
46 apartments for homeless and mentally disabled residents
for Step
Up on Second, a local organization dedicated to long-term
support of people in recovery. Like Colorado Court's 44 affordable
units, this project incorporates sustainable features while
also elevating the social and communal aspects of the complex.
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To continue the comparison with
Colorado Court, Step Up on Fifth is an infill site, where
the latter found itself on a generous corner lot. This condition
means the street frontage is minimal, yet the architects create
a memorable facade above the entry with operable aluminum
panels in various colors.
The water jet pattern gives the elevation some depth via a
dappling of shadows cast on the windows. Corrugated metal
wraps the aluminum shutters in L-shapes both in line with
the facade below and perpendicular to it above; the latter
turns the corner to run the
length of the site. |
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In
plan the four floors of residential units are an E-shape,
with two small courtyards bringing light to the middle
section that is not blessed with street or alley
frontage. The long corrugated metal wall with horizontal
slot openings defines the south edge of the courtyards, admitting
filtered light but also creating a sense of security at the
same time. Circulation, including a stair, is open
to the courtyards, not surprising for southern California
but nevertheless commendable for a complex where communal
interaction is important. |
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Like Colorado Court, what Pugh
+ Scarpa have managed to accomplish at Step Up on Fifth --
beyond striving for and attaining a level of sustainability
that goes beyond the baseline requirements in California --
is a strong sense of place on a site with programmatic and
other restrictions. The architects have used the site to their
advantage, using natural ventilation and sunlight to make
the outdoor spaces, albeit compact, perhaps the most successful
part of the design. It goes to show that a small site and
a small budget do not preclude big ideas.
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