D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln RENDERING: PROPOSED LANDSCPE w/EXISTING BUILDING
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
DOWNING HOUSE
OFFICE REMODEL/ADDITION
SAMSARA
628 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto CA 94301
COUNCIL PRE-SCREENING
(Submittal)
OWNER
ARCHITECT
Michael A. Chacon
135 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94301
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln NORTH
PROJECT ZONING/LOCATION
Project Location:
The project is located in the 'Downtown Commercial (CD) District with a PC overlay, and fronted by public strees on three sides: Cowper Street to the north, Forest Avenue to the west and Downing Lane to the south.
Ordinance:
Zoned CD-C(P).
Required Setbacks: per PC-3007
Maximum Site Coverage: per PC-3007
Maximum Bldg Ht: per PC-3007
Maximum Floor Area: per PC-3007
This project proposes a modest rear and side L-shaped addition to an existing Category 1 Queen Anne Victorian in Palo Alto (built in 1894), rehabilitating the property for continued office use while preserving its historic character as a designated local landmark. The new floor area provides code‑compliant, functional workspace that allows the building to remain viable in contemporary professional use, consistent with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Historic Context
The existing building is a late‑19th‑century wood‑frame Queen Anne Victorian, a style noted in Palo Alto materials for its complex roof forms, asymmetrical massing, and prominent corner elements. As a Category 1 resource, the property is recognized as having the highest level of historic significance locally, and exterior changes are subject to review by the Historic Resources Board.
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DESIGN APPROACH
The addition is located on the rear and secondary side elevations, with limited visibility from the public way, to maintain the primacy of the historic street‑facing facades. Massing, ridge heights, and roof forms are calibrated to remain subordinate to the original Queen Anne volume while echoing its proportions and general vertical emphasis. The cladding, trim, and foundation treatment are drawn from the same family of painted wood materials as the landmark structure, but detailing, fenestration groupings, and glazing patterns are intentionally simplified to clearly differentiate the new work as a product of its own time, consistent with Standards 9 and 10.
Preservation of Historic Fabric
Work on the historic portion of the building is limited to repair and selective replacement in kind of deteriorated elements, following the hierarchy of preserving existing materials wherever feasible. Character‑defining features of the Queen Anne, including its primary roof forms, corner massing, and street‑facing ornament, are retained and remain visually dominant when viewed from the public realm.
COMMINUTY BENEFIT AND PUBLIC VALUE
In addition to preservation and adaptive reuse, the project provides a package of community benefits centered on public access, sustainability, and landscape education. These benefits include public access to a parklet area, installation of EV charging infrastructure, use of highefficiency building systems, and creation of a garden area planted with indigenous species and accompanied by interpretive signage. The parklet will provide a publicly accessible outdoor amenity associated with the site, while the EV charging and efficient building systems will support cleaner transportation and improved environmental performance. The indigenous garden, envisioned as a small educational landscape similar in spirit to Gambrel Gardens, will offer informational signage about the plantings and their ecological value, extending the project’s benefit beyond the property itself.
CONCLUSION
Overall, the addition is designed to be compatible yet clearly differentiated in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards, maintaining the landmark Queen Anne as the primary historic artifact on the site. By pairing carefully calibrated new construction with community‑oriented benefits and long‑term stewardship, the project supports the continued viability of a significant historic resource while contributing to the broader community goals identified in local policy documents.
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln (E) NORTH ELEV
NORTH ELEV RENDER
NORTH (COWPER ST PUBLIC VIEWING CORRIDOR) EXISTING & PROPOSED EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln (E) EAST ELEV
EAST ELEV RENDER
EAST EXISTING & PROPOSED EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln (E) WEST ELEV
WEST ELEV RENDER
WEST (FOREST AVE ST PUBLIC VIEWING CORRIDOR) EXISTING & PROPOSED EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln (E) SOUTH ELEV
SOUTH ELEV RENDER
SOUTH (DOWNING LN) EXISTING & PROPOSED EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln
KEY PHOTO PLAN
The Downing House shares diverse architectural styles and uses at the Forest/Cowper intersection:
from a 13-story apartment complex, to a mixed-use 3-story building to a historic bed-andbreakfast built in 1896.
Public viewing corridors of the Downing House will remain virtually untouched as no additional square footage is being proposed on either of these elevations.
NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT
PROJ NORTH
PROJECT SITE
706 COWPER STREET
COWPER STREET ELEVATION (NEXT PAGE)
FOREST AVENUE ELEVATION (NEXT PAGE)
A
B
C F
E
D
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln
ADDITION
720 COWPER STREET 706 COWPER STREET 720 DRIVEWAY
ADDITION
(N) TRASH ENCLOSURE
706 COWPER STREET 454 FOREST AVENUE DOWNING ALLEY
The Downing House shares diverse architectural styles and uses at the Forest/Cowper intersection: from a 13-story apartment complex, to a mixed-use 3-story building to a historic bread-and-breakfast inn built in 1896.
Public viewing corridors of the Downing House will remain virtually untouched as no additional square footage is being proposed on either of these elevations.
STREET ELEVATION
A
B
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln A
720 COWPER STREET
B
454 FOREST AVENUE
NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln C
705 COWPER STREET
C
711 COWPER STREET
NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D
457-481 FOREST AVENUE
E
483 COWPER STREET
NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln E
501 FOREST AVENUE
NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT
D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln D:\MAC Project\DOWNING HOUSE\1c. Design\1c.4 Plng Reqts & Approval\PRESCREENING SUBMITTAL\C2_706COWPER_PLAN.pln The Nickel Gap profile is self-gapping, creating
a consistent nickel-sized space between each
board.
Smooth Finish Woodgrain Finish
NICKEL GAP
Nominal
Size
Actual
Thickness
Actual
Width Reveal Boards Per
Square
1 x 4 11/16" 3-1/2" 3-3/32" 24
1 x 6 11/16" 5-1/2" 5-3/32" 15
1 x 8 11/16" 7-1/4" 6-13/16" 11
1 x 10 11/16" 9-1/4" 8-13/16" 9
Available in 16-foot lengths
19 TRUEXGTERIOR NICKEL GAP SIDING
YOSEMITE TAN AGGREGATE
BASALT COBBLESTONE
GEVENA BLACK COBBLE BORDER
BASALT SCULPTED SLAB BENCH
MARVIN DIVIDED LITE WINDOW
PROPOSED EXTERIOR MATERIALS