Pair an innovative site design with simple, efficient architecture and you can run the same house plan 24 times without appearing monotonous. This lush pocket resort on the island of Maui proves it.
The 10-acre parcel isn’t waterfront property, but each condo residence enjoys expansive ocean views, thanks to terraced site grading (the name “papali” is Hawaiian for “little series of cliffs”). Single-family homes with shallow roof pitches are arranged on four “benches” that step down the hillside, with 16-foot vertical separations between them. As a result, the houses on the upper tiers enjoy unobstructed views over the rooflines of their neighbors down below.
Despite the tropical climate, A/C is optional in these lanai-style homes, and sometimes is not needed. Large window openings and ceiling fans promote natural cross-ventilation, and bedroom louvers channel rising hot air into a central roof gable, where it is exhausted through motor-operated gable end windows. Solar panels tucked discreetly onto storage room roofs provide domestic hot water, and clerestory windows channel in plenty of natural light, further reducing electrical consumption.
Each home’s 4,150 square feet of total living area includes three separate bedroom suites (nice for visitors) and 1,150 square feet of lanai or courtyard outdoor space.
“The plan has a left-hand and a right-hand version, but it’s the same plan 24 times,” explains architect Ed Weinstein. “Standardizing the footprint and roof forms allowed us to protect the views, and the elimination of conventional stairs and corridors makes the houses live larger. We offered three interior finish packages, and every purchaser hired their own interior designer, so the houses look very different on the inside.”
MERIT
Category: Resort or second-home community
Entrant/Architect/Land planner: Weinstein A|U Architects + Urban Designers, Seattle
Builder: Absher Construction Co., Puyallup, Wash.
Developer: Popkin Weinstein, Seattle
Landscape architect: Walters, Kimura, Motoda, Honolulu
Interior designer: Marcia Johnson Interior Design, Seattle
Learn more about markets featured in this article: Seattle, WA.
