We're building an idea house - the changing Western home

Sunset, July, 1999 by Daniel Gregory

It's almost time to invite you inside. After breaking ground last December, we are nearing the completion of our 1999 Idea House. It adapts and updates the ranch house concept - characterized by long porches, ample barbecue patios, and easy indoor-outdoor flow - that became identified with Western living during the 1950s. We call it the ranch house for the new millennium; it's being built by the O'Brien Group in the new Cupertino, California, community of Oak Valley. We open the big front door for public tours in late June.

Much still needs to be done, but you can already get a sense of what the house is going to look like. Wide gables, a long roof line, and a tower present a welcoming street facade. The house is both traditional and contemporary. For example, the shingles aren't wood, but a new product (Hardie Shingleside) that's fire-resistant and impervious to weather.

Every room offers redecorating or remodeling ideas, from innovative window treatments to a novel "shower island" in the master suite. Look for a full description in a fall issue. Design: South Coast Architects, Newport Beach, CA; Ann Jones Interiors, San Francisco; Ripley Design Group, Landscape Architects, Walnut Creek, CA.