The New Sequoia

Berkeley, CA

This mixed use building on Berkeley’s prominent Telegraph Avenue replaces a 44-unit building that suffered a catastrophic fire in late 2011. To engage the prominent corner of Telegraph and Haste Street, the new building’s mass is stepped with the second and third floors pushed back.

The building facades are a two-tone composition of cement plaster with color accents and material variations.

The corner of Telegraph Avenue and Haste Street is the heart of the UC Berkeley campus district.

The building was designed to engage with the corner, both from a pedestrian and automotive perspective.

The building shell is further refined by a rhythm of solar shading devices around the windows and a combination of metal and wood-slatted awnings above the storefronts.

The upper floors are used as a privately-owned dormitory for U.C. Berkeley students. The building, which was completed in 2016, was realized within the tight budget of $175/square foot. Restaurants along Telegraph Avenue were completed and opened the following year.