Two story Eichlers in the SF Bay area?
Is there such a thing as an original two story Eichler (ie not renovated to add a 2nd story)? I was told by someone in real estate that one might be coming up for sale in mid Palo Alto.
I didn't realize there was such a thing as an original two story. Can someone confirm that these exist, and if so, what do they look like?
I am in a one story Eichler now and am a huge Eichler / mid century fan, but would love a bit more room in the house with my growing family.
Thanks for any info
I haven't heard of any 2 story Eichlers in PA but there are a few original 2 story Eichlers in the San Mateo Highlands and in San Francisco near Portola Heights.
Yes, there are a few in mid town Palo Alto on Loma Verde and Torreya Court. Its really cool with atrium as well. These were built around 1972 to 1973. Supposed to be the last set of Eichlers built. I was told by an original owner that they were built by a different builder who bought the name from Eichler as Eichler just went out of business.
There are a couple West of 280 on a street of Eichlers. One of them was featured in Jerry Ditto's book. It's also mentioned in a July 1951 issue of Arts & Architecture.
the only
2 story eichlers
that are ORIGINAL
are located in
the san mateo highlands
one spectacular home
designed by Jones and Emmons
was built for Joe Eichler
btw
i have designed / built
2 story additions / new buildings
that successfully compliment
their original eichler
The one on La Mesa Drive & Gabarda Way in Portola Valley is from the early fifties and is original. As mentioned, it was featured in Arts & Architecture in 1951. It's also featured on page 69 of Design for Living: Eichler Homes.
Hello All: I see things are coming together piecemeal around the two-story topic, so please let me shed some light on things -- since I spent countless hours digging thru archives and prowling around streets doing research several years ago. FYI, for an exhaustive story on Eichler two stories, refer to the Eichler Network newsletter from spring 2003, which is still available through our online store here. What I concluded in that piece is that Joe Eichler built two-story and split-level houses almost from the beginning, and continued throughout his 25-year building career. And each of his three affiliated architectural firms contributed, at different times and to varying degrees, to making those designs a reality. With the assistance of architect Kinji Imada, who worked alongside Claude Oakland for two-plus decades, we estimated that app. 300 original Eichler two-stories and split-levels were built in all -- when one factors in the townhouse and urban developments in the count.
You can find original Eichler two-stories here:
-- 1951-'52 - one Jones & Emmons home on La Mesa Way at Gabarda in Portola Valley
-- 1958 - two A+A models at Melville and Cowper in Palo Alto
-- 1958 - Life House, split-level showcase house designed by Pietro Belluschi on Yorktown, San Mateo Highlands
-- 1965 - seven other Claude Oakland designs on the east side of Yorktown
-- 1965 - two Oaklands built at Harbor Point, on Starboard Court, Mill Valley
-- 1974 - nine Oaklands at Los Arboles Addition - on Torreya Ct. and Loma Verde Ave. in Palo Alto
-- also many Oakland models at Midrock (1971-'72 townhouses in Mountain View), Geneva Terrace (San Francisco's Visitacion Valley), and Diamond Heights (also S.F.)
-- I believe there are also a couple two-story originals in Terra Linda
One final note. Under normal building conditions, Eichler and his architects always preferred one-story houses over any other option, but ideal conditions weren’t always available. Without exception, Eichler’s two-story houses came about because of lot limitations: steep grades or size and shape of the lots made it impractical or unfeasible to build a single-story house.
Hope this helps.
Marty A.
wow, I don't think I have ever seen Marty post on the forum before. way to go! good information too.
