TCA Architects

CASPIAN

tcaeditor - Oct 18, 2024

Caspian is the gateway site into the Brooklyn Basin master plan located at Embarcadero and Brooklyn Basin Way. The building is broken down into multiple facades inspired by the Oakland Estuary and surrounding industrial maritime facilities, with the facades relating to each other to create a cohesive design. On Brooklyn Basin Way the retail takes priority with grand corners, deep recesses and rich materials to break down the street wall into a pleasant pedestrian environment. Bike facilities located on Embarcadero, help activate the street and encourage residents to use the new bike lanes connecting to the rest of Oakland. Multiple breaks; step downs and set backs scale down the size of the project. Large courtyards and roof decks provide ample outdoor space as well as view terraces. Facing the freeway, the nautical theme is played up with dramatic angles reminiscent of a ship’s bow which landmarks the entire Brooklyn Basin master plan.

PARK ON FIRST

tcaeditor - Oct 16, 2024

Park on First sits at the eastern entry to Santa Ana and is adjacent to Prentice Park and the Santa Ana Zoo. TCA planted the “seeds” for structural and environment improvements that would foster the future development of this challenged neighborhood… and lead to a district wide revitalization. The design concept resides between nature and the built environment so the public and residents can participate in the special nature of Prentice Park and adjacent zoo. The large central courtyard is strategically positioned between residential buildings to reinforce a “living in the park” environment while providing a publicly accessible and porous connection for future developments. The courtyard is activated with various amenities and landscaped in alignment with the zoo’s South African fauna. Each building facade uniquely responds to its context.

6TH STREET PLACE

tcaeditor - Oct 14, 2024

6th Street Place addresses the widespread homeless population of downtown Los Angeles. 6th Street Place uses modular construction, and services will be provided by The People Concern, a case management and advocacy organization with deep ties to the Skid Row community. The concept of community is at the core of the project’s design. Each pre-fabricated module is articulated individually on the façade, giving identity to the resident within it. Together, the modules form a cohesive building, just as a collection of individuals make a complete community. Not only does 6th Street Place provide much needed housing, but a strong sense of community through art and architecture. Built in a factory and assembled on site, modular design is environmentally friendly by reducing construction waste and impacts to the community.

ORCHARD PARK STUDENT HOUSING

tcaeditor - Oct 10, 2024

The Orchard Park design marries the rigor of the Prescient system with the playful, organic nature of a field of trees. The 19-acre site at UC Davis is a community of 11 graduate and family residential buildings and two amenity buildings. TCA designed the buildings to incorporate Prescient, a panelized light-gauge metal framing structural system. With an on-site assembly process, Prescient enabled the entire project to be built faster and with fewer costly on-site modifications. The TCA team embraced the efficiency of only 3 building types and oriented the buildings to introduce variety as they are nestled among the Heritage trees sprinkled throughout the site. Building rotation and variation of façade patterns helps reduce the tendency toward repetition naturally occurring from the Prescient system. Unique architectural details on the building corners help create memorable gateways and key intersections. Two smaller-scaled community buildings, appropriately, The Treehouse and The Greenhouse, then take the organic theme one step further, making the collegiate community feel more like a resort camp in the woods. These unique and playful buildings activate the site’s open space and blur the line between indoor and outdoor, providing a strong connection to nature.

THE TOWNSEND

tcaeditor - Oct 08, 2024

The new high-density mixed-use apartment project on a 5.13 Acre site in Mission Valley, San Diego, provides 267 residential units and 10 shopkeeper units. The Type III apartment building wraps a 5-story Type I parking garage, and provides 3,600 square feet of commercial and 6,000 square feet of retail use. Organized around 3 courtyards which are programmed with residential amenities, the building’s architecture is designed in a contemporary style. Fundamental to the design is the connection of pedestrian access to and from the site. Holding the edge of the buildings 20 feet back from the curb of Camino De La Reina and carving out a 4,000 square-foot space for corner and central public plazas provides a vibrant, pedestrian-oriented atmosphere. Locating the project’s “front door” adjacent to the large central public plaza allows for a sense of arrival and shared pedestrian experience between residents and public visitors.

VOX AT CUMULUS

TCA Architect - Oct 06, 2024

Located directly adjacent to the La Cienega/Jefferson Expo Line, VOX at Cumulus is a comprehensive residential and commercial mixed-use project that embodies all the defining characteristics of a Transit-Oriented Development (TOD). The site plan and architecture respond directly to the urban scale, fabric, and culture of its surroundings. The design is inspired by the notions of progress, change, and motion: the La Cienega frontage undulates back and forth to create a dynamic façade and to help break up the mass. VOX is a 7-story type III podium building, with access to 160,000 SF of indoor and outdoor amenities. The heart of the project features a publicly accessible 1-acre park, the Zocalo, and is flanked by 100k SF of commercial space, anchored by a new Whole Foods Market. In addition to providing a space for community events, such as movie nights and hosting food trucks, the Zocalo also serves to capture storm water and reduce the heat island effect. Those elements go hand-in-hand with more than 1,700 solar panels built into the complex, which helped the property achieve Green Point Rated Platinum status. The master plan of the 11.4 Acre Cumulus District is guided by the principles of connectivity and placemaking. Also, located on a portion of the site is a high-rise (ARQ at Cumulus) of approximately 290 units designed by SCB.

Evermont

tcaeditor - May 16, 2024

Evermont is a TOD mixed use development, with 118 family affordable units, and 62 homeless supportive senior units, above 50,000 sf of ground level retail and restaurants, along with a metro on-site job training office, and residential health services. The project is located near transit for ease of commute, and in a neighborhood with a strong need for housing in South Los Angeles. The multi-generation living, along with community service retail and restaurants, help to create a vibrant and safe community within the neighborhood. At the ground level, the retail and restaurants fronts onto a public pedestrian plaza, which becomes an active community gathering space for the neighborhood. The plaza has a much wider presence along Vermont Ave assisting with articulating the long urban edge while maintaining connection to the boarding school, the 6,000 SF restaurant fronting the garage and the retail anchor. Evermont’s façade is planar with strategic ‘carve-outs’ to allow for light into interior courtyards and provide an opportunity for a material and massing break. The adjacent parking structure will be 5 stories in height to allow for retail/grocer parking, school parking as well as Metro facility parking.

High-MASS

tcaeditor - Oct 18, 2023

Advancements in engineering and changes to building codes are creating new opportunities and applications for Mass Timber buildings. High-MASS (Materiality, Applicability, Sustainability, Scalability) is a Mass Timber building that was originally envisioned as a high-rise multifamily project using traditional concrete slab construction. The re-envisioned design will utilize the heavy timber option in Type IV-B, allowing up to 12 stories of Mass Timber over 1 level of Type I-A concrete at the ground level. The design accentuates the beauty of wood by allowing it to be exposed. Heavy Timber columns, beams and a portion of the ceilings are exposed, giving us a rich, warm aesthetic finish. The exterior expresses the aesthetic through transparent window wall in front of a grid of wood columns, with wood composite veneer panels over the remainder of the facade. The most efficient means to provide lateral resistance for the project is with concrete shear walls located in the vertical core. The lighter Mass Timber building in the Bay Area has many benefits including, but not limited to, quicker erection time with less labor, materials which sequester carbon, health and biophilic benefits for the residents and a nearly Net Zero building. High-MASS is the perfect blend of nature and science.

CSUMB Master Plan Concept

tcaeditor - Sep 16, 2023

The CSUMB 2nd Avenue master plan achieves the Client’s and University’s design goals for a socially vibrant, wellness-focused community that is integrated with nature. The 72-acre development opportunity is located a half mile from the ocean and just adjacent to the CSU Monterey Bay campus. The largely undeveloped site with existing sporadic development presents an opportunity for a mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented development, ranging in market rate residential, to senior and family affordable housing. The Client and CSUMB envisioned a supportive community to the university and surrounding area. The concept starts with restorative design by transforming the asphalt parking lot into an active, pedestrian friendly community with housing for all ages. The existing Cypress Grove is preserved for its natural beauty and contribution to identity of place. To complement the natural beauty of the site, the architectural and landscape design will create beautiful spaces that the community will cherish. The grading of the property influenced vehicular/pedestrian circulation, along with the preservation of cypress groves.

HANOVER DIRIDON

tcaeditor - Sep 15, 2023

Hanover Diridon at 717 West Julian sits on the edge of two worlds in San Jose- a lower density largely residential neighborhood of bungalows and apartment buildings, and the planned “Innovation District” as envisioned as part of the Diridon Station Plan in San Jose. The Innovation District includes planned housing as well as a large office presence from some of Silicon Valley’s largest employers. The building design expresses this nexus in three parts- a larger scaled gesture to the future district, a reduced scale rhythm to the residential district, and a dramatic corner gesture and plaza where the two meet.