Acalanes Court Apartments
Walnut Creek, CA

Affordable Family Housing

SUMMARY: 17 units of housing on a challenging-shaped and steep site.

Acalanes Court Apartments offers 17 units of affordable family housing near downtown Walnut Creek. The building’s California Mission inspired details are in keeping with the older residences in the neighborhood. It occupies a challenging-shaped and steeply sloping lot - a parcel left over from when the construction of the I-680 freeway cut through the neighborhood. An enclosed corridor separates and insulates the units from the freeway and the BART, and the units open onto a protected courtyard terrace that catches the morning sun.

The twenty-seven foot elevation change of the lot is used to best advantage with the parking area placed below the building on the downhill side of the lot. The driveway also serves as a fire lane, and is shared by the neighboring Trinity Presbyterian Church to the north, which is collaborating with the development team to provide independent living services for the residents.

The building features a two-story lobby, a protected courtyard terrace that most units open onto, an elevator, a community room, restrooms for the common area, laundry facilities, and a secure structure for bicycle storage to help encourage alternative transportation methods.

The building will be environmentally friendly to the maximum extent possible, including the integration of recycled and green materials throughout, an emphasis on indoor air quality, and the use of low-impact, efficient mechanical systems.

Project Data:
Building: 17 units (17,707 s.f.)
Construction Cost: $3,800,000 (budget)
Site: 0.5 acres (34 units per acre)
Parking Spaces: 21 (1.25 per unit)
Features: Community room, 2nd floor terrace, exterior walkways, bike storage shed

Project Team
Client: Satellite Housing, Inc.
Contractor: J.H. Fitzmaurice, Inc.
Principal Designer: Erick Mikiten, AIA
Project Manager: Kristina Charbonneau

Drive-by View From I-680 Freeway

Rendering from Street