AURAX

Permitted  |  2024  |  Noe Valley, San Francisco

The Vault & Light

A new two-family home in Noe Valley where vaulted ceilings and skylights draw the sky inward.

Street facade of The Vault & Light, a new two-family house in Noe Valley: a gabled volume with a projecting clapboard bay and tall wood-framed windows

The clients, two related households, wanted to share one lot without sharing one life. The brief was a building that reads as a single, quiet San Francisco house from the street while giving each family its own light, privacy and outdoor space. The circulation is planned so the two units can work together for one large household, or stay fully private for two separate ones.

The answer puts the main living level on the top floor. Vaulted ceilings and skylights draw the sky inward, while generous openings keep a quiet connection to the outdoors. The upper unit looks out over the historic rooflines to the hills of Noe Valley, while the lower unit opens to deep decks and a backyard retreat, setting up a dialogue between the character of the city and the refuge of home.

The material palette is modern, warm and timeless, crafted to feel contemporary yet enduring. Modern in expression yet respectful of the neighborhood's history, the house sits gently in its context: open, rooted and quietly bold.

“Maryam also brings a thoughtful, collaborative approach to navigating the complexities of entitlement, planning, and construction, which makes her not only a talented designer but also a highly effective project partner.”Nabeel Samad, client, The Vault & Light and In Light, Noe Valley
Location
Noe Valley, San Francisco
Type
New construction, two-family residence
Scope
Full architectural design, planning submission, permit drawings, interior material direction
Size
Two units over four levels, 5,082 sq ft
Status
Design completed 2024; permit approved
Architecture
AURAX, Maryam Nassajian
Interiors
Michael Kramer
Structural
Della Tran
Images
Design renderings
The Vault & Light at dusk: a gray gabled house with tall oak-framed windows glowing from within
Rear of the house stepping back over three levels, with a glazed gable at the top, glass balconies and a garden
Top-floor kitchen and dining under a vaulted ceiling with two skylights, looking out to the Victorian rooflines of Noe Valley
Top-floor living room under the vaulted ceiling, with a linear fireplace in a dark wood wall and the kitchen beyond
Living area facing the full-height glazed gable window at the rear, beside a skylit stair
Dark oak wall with a long linear fireplace, the kitchen island and a sculptural pendant under the skylight
Top-floor living room facing the full-height glazed gable, with a sectional sofa, a linear fireplace set into a dark oak wall and sculptural pendants hanging from the vaulted ceiling
Bedroom with wood-paneled walls and floor-to-ceiling glass to the trees
Lower-level living room opening through floor-to-ceiling glass to a planted garden and deck
Lower-level kitchen in light oak, with a long island and full-height cabinetry
Light oak kitchen seen down its length toward the dining and living areas and the garden
Dining room with three tall windows to the street and a sculptural pendant above an oval table

Design process

Two homes, one entry

The two units stack over four levels. Unit 1 holds the lower two, with its bedrooms in newly excavated space below its living floor; Unit 2 holds the upper two, with bedrooms beneath its living floor. Both are reached through a single fire-rated entry beside the shared garage, where each unit’s stair begins. That shared entry gives the house its flexibility: it can be lived in as two separate homes or by one household across all four levels. Outside, the massing answers the street: a gabled roof and a front bay that echoes the neighborhood’s bay windows, while the rear steps back into decks to keep light for the house next door.

Hand-drawn massing sketch of The Vault & Light: a gabled house with a projecting front bay that echoes the neighborhood’s bay windows, decks stepping back at the rear to keep light for the neighbor, a lightwell and excavated lower level, and labels for each unit’s living, bedroom and dining floors and the garage access below the bay
Massing: a gabled house with a front bay that echoes its neighbors
Hand-drawn massing sketch of The Vault & Light as a box divided into four levels: Unit 1 bedrooms in an excavated lower level and Unit 1 living and kitchen above, then Unit 2 bedrooms and Unit 2 living and kitchen on top, separated by an orange line. Red and blue arrows trace each unit’s route from a fire-rated shared entry beside the shared garage up its own stair.
Section sketch: two units stacked around a shared, fire-rated entry

Drawings

Floor plans

Rendered floor plans of The Vault & Light on four levels, with north arrow. Unit 1, basement: primary bedroom with closet and bath, a second bedroom and bath, laundry, elevator and a two-car garage, opening to the rear garden. Unit 1, first floor: open living room with fireplace, kitchen with island and dining room, over the garden. Unit 2, second floor: primary bedroom with closet, bath and rear deck, two more bedrooms and two baths. Unit 2, third floor: open living room, kitchen with island and dining room under the vaulted ceiling, with decks front and rear.
Unit 1 on the basement and first floor; Unit 2 on the second and third floors.

Before and proposed

The house as it stands today

The existing house from the street: a white stucco facade with a curved parapet, bay windows and a garage below a long exterior stair
Before
The new street facade: a gabled two-family house with tall wood-framed windows
Proposed
The existing front room with its bay window and corner fireplace, where the new dining room will be
Before
The new dining room with three tall windows to the street
Proposed
The existing galley kitchen with white cabinets and a small island
Before
The new light oak kitchen with a long island and full-height cabinetry
Proposed
The existing rear yard and back of the lot
Before
The new rear elevation stepping back over three levels above the garden
Proposed

Existing photos: Engel & Völkers listing.

Planning something similar? Let's talk about your home.

Start a project