Following last week’s visit to New York City-based Murdock Solon Architects, we are moving our Meet Your Next Employer series to Santa Monica this week to explore the work of KoningEizenberg.

The firm describes its design process as “collaborative and structured to help individuals, organizations, and cities realize their goals,” with an underlying interest in “inclusive and sustainable neighborhoods and rethinking housing, community, and educational settings.” The firm’s resulting portfolio, which spans residential, educational, cultural, and commercial schemes, has received over 200 awards for design, sustainability, and historic preservation.

Over on Archinect Jobs, the firm is currently hiring for a Communications Coordinator to join their Santa Monica studio. For candidates interested in applying for a position, or anybody interested in learning about the firm’s output, we have rounded up five contemporary projects in Santa Monica by KoningEizenberg that exemplify the studio’s ethos.

See-Through House, Santa Monica, CA

The suburban See-Through House sought to create a “relaxed connection to the street” while maximizing the perception of space within a typical residential lot. Externally, the home is defined by a barn-shaped roof that emerged from studying the maximum permitted planning envelope, while also reinforcing the family’s background and interest in the “informal, modest, and communal.”

“A Quaker bonnet, seen in an old family portrait, inspired the shaping of the guesthouse roof, which backdrops the series of indoor and outdoor spaces,” the team adds. “Movable privacy/sun control screens between house and yard modify views inside and out at different times of the day.”

The Park, Santa Monica, CA

A major new multifamily project at 500 Broadway, The Park was completed in April 2022, delivering 249 residential units across a 299,000-square-foot plan. In an effort to evolve the local multifamily typology, the scheme incorporates a series of open public spaces at the street level that work to activate a connection to public transit using cross-grained massing. A one-acre rooftop garden completes the program with additional space for tenants while reducing urban heat island effects on the development, while the street level incorporates retail spaces.

“Faceting the building envelope extended unit views and is one of two key facade treatments used in the design,” the team says about the design approach to the facade. “It is replaced on south-facing elevations by a layered assembly that provides shade as it expands a sense of distance between buildings. A steel prefabricated moment frame reduced construction time by 3 months to cost-effectively achieve the desired modulation and flexible unit planning.”

John Adams Middle School, Santa Monica, CA

For their overhaul of the John Adams Middle School, KoningEizenberg incorporated distinctive solar chimneys that eliminate the need for air conditioning. Elsewhere, the project saw the creation of a new entry, renovation of existing buildings, nine new classrooms with outdoor learning spaces, and a rustic landscape around a new athletic field.

“Each new classroom is paired with an outdoor learning space and includes distinctive solar chimneys to provide summer comfort without air conditioning as well as an embedded empirical lesson about differential air pressure,” the team adds about their overhaul of the 1000-student school.

Belmar, Santa Monica, CA

The Belmar affordable housing scheme sought to deliver 160 units as part of a “sustainable neighborhood” for Santa Monica. The project’s master plan was developed through a community design process, leading to an urban form organized around a public street walk, anchoring affordable housing to the south and market-rate condominiums to the north and south.

“The project fronts the walk-street and negotiates a sloping triangular site wedged between existing office buildings,” the team explains. “Manipulation of the grade change shapes a central courtyard to achieve the required unit count within strict height limits. Savings from the efficient plan bought structurally expensive cantilevers that release more ground level open space along the street walk.”

Pico Branch Library, Santa Monica, CA

The Pico Branch Library was conceived as a node to encourage the use of educational resources in a minority community, with an architectural form that engages its park setting. Conceived as a “community living room,” the scheme sought to preserve existing green space on the site and activate an adjacent event plaza while repurposing currently underutilized space.

The library’s defining feature is a distinctive roof form generated by studies of sustainability, daylighting, and water conservation strategies including rainwater harvesting. The scheme was subsequently awarded LEED Platinum designation.

Meet Your Next Employer is one of a number of ongoing weekly series showcasing the opportunities available on our industry-leading job board. Our Job Highlights series looks at intriguing and topical employment opportunities currently available on Archinect Jobs, while our weekly roundups curate job opportunities by location, career level, and job description.