Island House Plan 9

Downstairs main Verandah




Upstairs Owners Suite Verandah




First Floor Plan


Second Floor Plan

This 7,200 sf plan is comprised of three buildings and a service building. The central main building has the kitchen and indoor seating areas with a large covered verandah on the main floor. The second floor is the owners retreat - with it's own large covered verandah. Two identical guest wings frame a swimming pool and are connected to the main building by covered walkways. The four guest bedroom all have large bathrooms with walk-in closets and outdoor showers. If the house is going to be in a rental pool, having the four guest bedroom equal in amenities makes it more desirable for multiple couples since no one is stuck in a back bedroom without a private bathroom.

When placed correctly on a site, the "U" configuration can protect the the pool and terrace areas from blowing wind. Each of the buildings are only one room deep so they can be adequately cooled by natural ventilation, and do not need to rely on air conditioning. The service building has a storage garage, laundry workspace, staff toilet and a covered porch for staff to hang out away from the main buildings.

The two 49' wide verandahs are the outdoor living space for the house with roll down rain screens for inclement weather. The buildings are simple and uncomplicated in style for a casual and relaxing Island lifestyle.

San Francisco In-fill Housing

All Rights Reserved ©2010 MCM Architects

This is a design concept for an in-fill housing project that combines a historical building with a new building on a 25 foot wide vacant lot next door, on Sutter Street in San Francisco. The elevator becomes the connecting element between the old and new. Units in the new building become open loft type spaces, while units in the old building are crafted out of exisiting rooms that have interesting historical architectural woodwork and detail to be preserved.

Contemporary House Plan 1

Ground Floor Plan

Second Floor Plan (Optional, or could be left unfinished)

This courtyard plan allows a lot of flexibility for future changes without expanding beyond it's initial footprint. This house starts as a 1660 sf two bedroom, two bath home on one level. Adding the upper level above the garage increases it's area to 2309 sf, while incorporating the enclosed garage as living space increases the area to 2670 sf. The house is approximately 66' deep and 50' wide.

The 16' x 17' courtyard brings light deep inside the house and allows for easy natural ventilation in the summer. The courtyard provides private and safe outdoor living space even within a dense urban neighborhood.

The optional space above the garage could be left unfinished until it is needed to save cost. It is large enough to be divided into two bedrooms with a bath for children, or can be made into a large master suite for parents. In the illustration it is shown as a large media work space for two people.

The separation of the garage into an enclosed area and an open carport allows the garage to be incorporated into the living space of the house, while still leaving a covered parking space for those people with one car. The garage could be remodeled into an office or study at a later date. It could be made into a family room by opening the wall into the house, which will connect it to the kitchen and provide views into the courtyard.

So from a single footprint, or foundation, you can have a comfortable two bedroom house, or a larger four bedroom house, or a four bedroom house with office or family room. Flexibility to grow. Flexibility to change over time. See this post for an illustration of how the plan can evolve.

Contemporary House Plan 1 Exteriors

A simple large "umbrella" pitched roof covers the house, with overhangs for sun control and rain protection. The windows on the side of the house are small, or placed high, for privacy if neighboring houses are close by. If a lot's side yard is wide enough, a fenced courtyard off the Master Bathroom can be added (as shown on the plan). Sliding glass doors can open the bathroom to this courtyard, and even an outdoor shower could be added.

Contemporary House Plan 1 Interiors

The Living, Dining, Master Bedroom and Loft have high ceilings. Nearly all rooms open onto the Courtyard making the rooms fell larger and visually connecting the interior spaces. This house will feel much larger from the inside than the 1660 sf footprint would suggest.

Jumby Bay Island

Updated 10•16•14


We got involved with Jumby Bay in 1983, when the owner at that time asked us to look at this Island he owned two miles off Antigua and make some recommendations at to what he could do with it. The result 27 years later is shown above. Initially there were just a couple of rundown houses, 8 odd shaped hotel bungalows, an aging generator and some small cisterns on the Island. We started with a 12 room hotel, mainly as a vehicle to get people to the Island to see the real estate. The hotel grew to 28 rooms, we then tore it down and designed a new hotel that re-opened last year. We started the real estate development with a design for some attached villas that sold for about $250,000. The first freestanding villas we designed cost between $1 and $2 million. We eventually designed about 16 villas and all the attached villas for the Island. The villas are now are selling for $15 to $20 million and above. The Island is completely self sufficient with it's own power plant, water plant and waste disposal. It has been an incredible journey. We went from having no phone service (calls had to be placed from pay phone siting in a mosquito breeding puddle on Antigua) to using our iPhones for phone calls, emails and to check drawings back at our office in Portland.

Jumby Bay is a prime example of how architecture and planning does not stay frozen in time, but must be flexible enough to evolve and change over the years.

Portland River House Renovation

A client purchased a nondescript and dated contemporary home located on a stunning river front lot. The home was renovated to showcase the client's art collection and extensive wine cellars. The house was expanded and main living areas reorganized to take better advantage of the dramatic river and city views while opening up the rooms for more congenial entertaining.