MERRILL
MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA
Articulated as two interlocking volumes of stone and wood, the planes of the building angle back from the street to modulate both the natural daylight that enters the interior spaces and the sweeping views that look across to the mountain ranges on the outskirts of town.
We transposed our exploration of environmental response and material expression to an urban setting.
The four-story, LEED Silver, mixed-use building is situated directly across from the Menlo Park train stop, creating a gateway to the town and reinforcing an important pedestrian walking path that connects the station with downtown. The design, which houses commercial space on the ground level and residential units on the upper stories, begins at the street level, where the building engages with a broad sidewalk that links restaurants, outdoor sitting spaces, and cafes along the daily walking path to the town's commercial center.
