Karen's Cottage: Studio with a Sleeping Loft

This is Karen's story. Karen is a professor living in Berkeley, CA. She lives with her daughter in a beautiful two bedroom one bath home. Karen had the following needs: An independent home for an aging relative who lives with her for several months per year, a sanctuary for her own work, a guest house for a steady stream...

Spring's Cottage: One Bedroom Spanish-Style Cottage in Orinda

At the end of a long narrow driveway this Spanish style home and a new cottage are tucked between old oak trees and giant redwood trees. The new cottage is a beautiful 674 square foot home with a double sided glass fireplace the faces both the bedroom and the living room. Large windows in the kitchen and living room overloo...

Poppy's Place: Two-Bedroom, Two-Bath Home in Berkeley's Elmwood Neighborhood

This not-so-small home in Berkeley's historic Elmwood neighborhood has both a colorful past and future. When the owners purchased their main home, they inherited a dilapidated house in their backyard that was built in 1908. This 1908 house was most likely an earthquake shack that was thrown together after the big San...

Erin's In-Law Apartment

A 3 bed, 2 bath home will be turning into a 4 bed, 3 bath home plus a 470 sf separate two-car garage. Erin contacted New Avenue in April 2012 to help her remodel and expand her home in Menlo Park, CA. The project is weeks from completion. Erin had sold a nearby Eichler Home in Palo Alto and bought this home specifically...

John and Kathleen's Two-Story ADU in Santa Cruz

“I live in Santa Cruz and have a decently large lot, and we want to build an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) with a garage in our backyard for my father-in-law,” John inquired New Avenue at the end of November 2012. New Avenue visited John and his wife, Kathleen, in mid-December to check out what their options could be...

Foothill ADU in Fairfax, CA

Moises, a retired surgeon, and Kathleen, the local small business owner of gift and plant boutique The Potting Shed, are making room for family and friends in Fairfax, CA. They contacted New Avenue back in the fall of 2012 looking to create a backyard cottage.

Joan’s Pied-à-terre

A pied-à-terre, or small home away from home, is what a couple is building for Joan, the mother-in-law of and Rebecca and mother of Rob, in the Thousand Oaks neighborhood of Berkeley, CA. New Avenue is working with the family to replace an existing shed with a new 346 square foot accessory dwelling unit. The small backyard...

Dennis and Lisa's ADU in El Cerrito, CA

Dennis and Lisa, two young parents from El Cerrito, CA, contacted us in the summer of 2011 with the idea of replacing a huge old chicken coop in their backyard with a nice little cottage for Dennis’s mother. Having grown up nearby, Dennis wants to invest wisely in their character-rich property that has amazing gardens and...

La Casita: 1 Bed 1 Bath Cottage in Walnut Creek

Hillary and John, a young couple in Walnut Creek, CA, got in touch with New Avenue back in in the beginning of the year. They want to build a senior-friendly backyard cottage to bring Hillary’s mother closer. It will incorporate several Universal Design elements such as grab bars, soft non-slip flooring, an open living...

Eco House in Palo Alto

The Department of Energy, in partnership with the Silicon Valley Energy Watch and the City of Palo Alto, hired New Avenue to build this modular home as a model of sustainability and energy efficiency. It has a full kitchen, bathroom, laundry, one bedroom and an extra sleeping loft.

Mary's Still Waters Retreat

This two bedroom cottage with craftsman details is based on our Big L design. The owner is a water colorist who works from home quite often and she has named the little cottage "Still Waters" as it will be her place for calm and creativity. One of the bedrooms is being left open to the living room so it can be used as...

Susan's Cottage: Studio with Upstairs Loft in the East Bay of CA

This little cottage is all about bringing family together. It is located on a quiet East Bay block that is lined with classic California bungalows and it is opening a world of opportunity for the owner. The owner will initially use this extra space when her daughter, son-in-law and grandchild are visiting from their...

Kitty's Place: Accessible Two Bedroom in Berkeley

A Berkeley couple created this two bedroom two bath addition to their Berkeley house for their life-long friend, Kitty, who needs a wheelchair accessible home. They have all been friends and active in supporting their community for decades. At this stage in her life, Kitty, needs a live in attendant and also wants to be...

Judy's Garden Cottage: Downsizing to a Backyard Cottage in Albany, CA

Three generations plan to share this cute little Albany, California home. They owners recently completed a major upgrade and remodel to the main home with new electric, new plumbing, new windows and a new kitchen and bath. Now they are ready to build a little cottage that is sustainability built with recycled and...