Welcome to How They Pulled It Off, where we take a close look at one particularly challenging aspect of a home design and get the nitty-gritty details about how it became a reality.  

Fold, slide, layer, weave, and expand are not verbs one might typically use to describe a home, but they’re appropriate for this 1,737-square-foot residence in Los Angeles’s Montecito Heights neighborhood. When owner Shahan Sanossian approached Bojána Bányász and Donatella Cusmá, cofounders of L.A–based architecture firm Claret-Cup, he brought with him a “long list” (his words!) of requirements that included a guest suite, a reconfigurable living space, ample outdoor connection without sacrificing privacy, and a Palm Springs midcentury-modern aesthetic (but not the copy/paste kind). He also envisioned a house that…folded.

When the design was underway, the city’s zoning laws at that time meant the guest suite had to be connected to the main home by an internal staircase. To honor Shahan’s emphasis on privacy, the architects added a door at the bottom of the guest suite stairs. It was the makings of a solution, but when viewed from the main level, to Shahan, they left the impression of a staircase to nowhere.

Shahan, who works in communications but studied architecture in college, searched the internet for ideas, and eventually proposed a solution: what about a stair hatch? Bányász and Cusmá loved the idea, and began researching what it would take. Typically found in commercial or industrial buildings rather than custom houses, the architects adapted the concept to create a folding railing that Shahan can toggle between two positions, depending on if he wants to access the guest suite below or to add 40 square feet to his living room. “Flexible space is something that more and more clients are asking for,” says Bányász. “Life changes and family grows, so it’s nice to have the flexibility, along with a feature that’s a little playful, but also useful.

How they pulled it off: A stair hatch with a hidden function 

• After Shahan proposed the idea of a stair hatch to Bányász and Cusmá, the architects began researching everything from boat hatches to piston technology. The stair hatch design wasn’t finalized until the home was in construction, which the architects say is not uncommon to their process. “[The hatch] is a mix between a piece of furniture and a piece of structure. It’s part of the floor. In terms of materiality it relates to the stairs, which also relates to the movable, modular furniture in the house.” says Bányász. 

• “[The stair hatch] required something that we enjoy doing, which is working on sites with fabricators who are willing to experiment with things that they haven’t done before,” says Cusmá. “There were a lot of days on site spent measuring, adjusting, prototyping, and doing it again.” 

• In the down position, the plywood panel lies nearly flush within a steel frame that adds strength and rigidity. When the hatch is folded in the down position, it features a gray linoleum cover that blends with the concrete floor. While in the up position, it complements the textural CMU ribbon wall that weaves from the covered patio to the opposite end of the living room.

• The hatch had to be structural engineered to have the same load-bearing capacity as the surrounding concrete floor. At the same time, it needed to be light enough for one person to operate it being that Shahan lives alone. Thanks to the primarily plywood materiality, hinge mechanism, and four hydraulic pistons, Shahan can quickly and easily reconfigure the hatch from the living room.

• Within the staircase, the architects designed a custom folded metal railing. The top of the wooden treads are painted a dark blue that complements the geometric blue and white design of the surrounding hallway.

• When secured in the “down” position, the hatch becomes a walkable portion of the floor that expands the living room’s footprint from 200 to 240 square feet. In the “up” position, which is how Shahan secures it in the day-to-day, the hatch appears as a visual extension of the railing. However the extra space is perfect for when Shahan hosts, including a recent New Year’s Eve party. “I could fit a lot of people. It really works well for those kinds of situations,” says Shahan. 

The operable hatch is not the only active feature that architects designed.  At the main level, two sets of folding glass doors dissolve the barrier between the main level’s interior and the outdoor courtyard. When it comes to furniture, a series of modular wooden boxes with linoleum tops can be used alternatively as steps or added seating, while in the kitchen a wood-and-soapstone island pulls apart to accommodate up to eight guests. Taken together the result is a house where it seems you can never be bored.  

Structural Engineer: Nous Engineering

Framing and Foundations: Prime Construction, Inc.

Lighting Design: Claret-Cup