Tahoe House

Tahoe House was a project I completed for the Technology Student Association's Architectural Design competition.

Official competition materials are to the right (below on mobile), and summarized below.

Students were challenged to design a design a multi-generational vacation home on a stream, river, or lake. Deliverables included:

A portfolio including a written explanation of design, details concerning construction systems, and architectural drawings including floorplans, elevations, and sections.
A scale model no larger than 24"x24" footprint that represents the proposed solution.

The final submitted portfolio is attached at the end.

HS - Architectural Design.pdf

On overall intent:

"Rather than cutting costs on construction and design, as is so commonly done, the priority was to sculpt the house with excellence fostering a feeling of togetherness, which in result would make gatherings as low-stress and enjoyable as possible in order to foster valuable memories and prioritize family values. To fulfill this goal, five crucial elements of location and design were identified and implemented into the solution built on the shores of Lake Tahoe:"

- Interpretation of the Challenge/Explanation of Merit and Style

Ease of Access, Climate, Generational-Mindfulness, Environmental Awareness, Versatility

On architectural styles:

"...but these contemporary buildings, while aesthetically pleasing, are hardly livable and represent an unwanted departure from the traditionalism that should be embraced by a generational home. The sharp concrete forms and long glass faces of ultra-modernism are at odds with the fragile natural environment they are built in.

So instead, the modernist designs were combined with tradition and family memories. Ski lodges, family dinners, cabins in the forest; rustic, warm, familiar. Windows took the form of large glass panels, but were still framed by locally-sourced wood. Weight-bearing elements made of natural, organic-looking stone rather than featureless brutalist concrete."

- Interpretation of the Challenge/Explanation of Merit and Style

On Location:

"The site is a small arrow-head shaped peninsula jutting out from a larger bluff on the Eastern shore of Lake Tahoe. The area surrounding the site is very hilly and is separated from the rest of the lakeside region by North Canyon Creek, which runs through Slaughterhouse Canyon.

This particular geographical feature serves to psychologically isolate the area, as the only road to the site passes through the bottom of the canyon. This separation will work towards the purpose of separating outside life (work, school, etc…) from time with family and friends. The geography also physically separates the area from the rest of the world, and since Land’s End Drive has no outlet, this adds one final layer of privacy and safety to the house."

- Interpretation of the Challenge/Explanation of Merit and Style