Monte Mar

With expansive views across Richardson and San Francisco Bay, this hillside home was modernized and enlarged to connect its living spaces more closely to the surrounding landscape. The upper floor was reconfigured to open the kitchen to the living and dining rooms, bringing the view into the heart of the home. Below, excavation into the hillside allowed the ground floor to expand beneath the existing upper level, more than doubling the lower floor’s area.

Each of the three bedrooms opens directly to outdoor space, while the living and dining rooms extend onto a generous deck. Glass railings preserve sightlines to the Bay, allowing the horizon to remain a continuous presence both indoors and out.

The exterior stair became a particularly significant part of the renovation. Shortly after purchasing the property, one of the clients was injured when the deteriorated stair collapsed beneath him. Its replacement offered an opportunity to rethink both safety and the connection between outdoor levels. The new stair widens as it descends, opening toward the large patio and framing the approach to the view. What had been a precarious passage is now a welcoming transition between the house and its hillside setting.