Overview

Arnold Mammarella, Architecture + Consulting is an established East Bay architectural and consulting firm that provides well-crafted and memorable residential architecture, expertise in housing design to public and private sector clients, and consulting to cities in the areas of design/development review, planning regulations, policy guidance, and site/neighborhood planning or feasibility studies.

The firm principal, Arnold Mammarella, has 35 years experience in the field and has been in private practice since 1995. Each client gets my full attention through every phase of the project.

My approach to architecture and urban design is holistic and draws upon understanding how the built form interacts with human activities and how it can contribute to personal and community wellness. I look forward to collaborating with private and public sector clients to improve our cities and neighborhoods. Key areas of experience and services include residential architecture, housing design/housing typologies, design review consulting, and policies/regulations.

Residential Architecture

The design process is a personal and intimate experience that springs from the relationship of client and architect. Each client’s preferences and lifestyle matter along with site and neighborhood conditions. Unique and creative design responds to these inputs in a way that solves practical needs while lifting the spirit. A new home or addition should not just support the life of its occupants, it should improve if not transform those lives.

My designs tend to develop from diagrammatically simple concepts into lively building forms. Building design is integrated with site design in order to unlock the property’s full potential. Orienting building forms and usable outdoor spaces for passive solar access, configuring the home’s layout to capture views, and incorporating usable courts and gardens in a manner that is both functional and pleasing are among the ways to unlock this potential. Much attention is also given to the flow and spatial quality of the interiors, how the rooflines define the building form, and the use of character defining materials and detailing. Environmentally conscientious design choices and solving functional needs are given equal emphasis with aesthetic considerations.

Previous clients have had homes designed in traditional California styles like Spanish Eclectic, Craftsman and Mid-Century Modern along with Prairie Style and contemporary Modern designs. When working within styles, I am very attentive to the forms, proportions, and detailing that are the essence of the style, and can do accurate historical interpretations as well as modern interpretations that hold true to the unifying language of the style. With a distinctive modern design an expanded range of solutions is possible to create a one-of-a-kind response to site and program.

Design Review Consulting & Urban Planning

Arnold Mammarella has been the consulting architect for development review and other aspects of city planning to several bay area cities. Consultation to city planning departments is based on working closely with city staff to understand local concerns and addressing those concerns through the development of innovative zoning strategies, design guidelines, and design review services. Services are frequently provided on an on-call basis to allow for flexibility to respond to workload and assignment needs.

Consultation services have been provided related to review and design support on many large and varied projects such as large multifamily development and shopping centers and for downtown and neighborhood districts, including projects developed within Specific Plan areas and under development agreements. Project review services on larger projects may involve interactions with planning commissions or similar public bodies or ah-hoc committees to present or give feedback as requested or to work with applicants to respond to concerns raised by planning commissioners.

Design review of single-family homes is a major practice area that has included consultation or remedial design on close to four thousand houses since 1992. To this I bring not just my experiences designing homes and studying architecture, but also listening and communication skills developed with the help of education in clinical counseling and some work in that field. I have found that establishing rapport and degree of trust with homeowners, architects, and developers is valuable to building successful working relationships while lowering the stress related to the permitting process. I am especially adept at hillside environments having done a great deal of work in the Oakland Hills Fire Area. Review services also extend to historic preservation and rehabilitation projects using the Secretary of Interior Standards.

Housing Design & Typologies

Housing design and academic level expertise on housing typologies and approaches to land use policy around housing development are the third area of practice. My approach to housing is not simply about responding to a development program, but more about applying building types to specific contexts effectively to achieve density but with desired dwelling quality and diversity, neighborhood fit, and placemaking.

Housing design and strategic, policy, or design consultation is supported by extensive study of housing types such as courtyard, row-house, loft, podium, urban block, etc. For urban infill development, consulting and design services can inform a city or developer of the best options for a property. For larger properties, neighborhood design plays an important role. Neighborhood design is a lost art in recent decades as land subdivision, development densities, and street layouts have been disconnected activities that minimally consider the banal environments they tend to create. Designing neighborhoods remarkably is less difficult than one might expect as lots, streets, landscape zones, and detached or attached housing units can often be configure in ways to achieve both high densities and pedestrian friendly places reminiscent of traditional urban or small-town streetscapes.

Housing design services may be project based or strategic planning based to policy makers and others interested in responding to the housing crisis. They also can include design services that relate to how to make desirable and user or family friendly dwellings at the individual dwelling unit level. Most housing consumers don’t have a say in the housing they live in. I prefer to think of housing in terms of dwellings rather than units as this humanizes the design process and places the emphasis on the fact that people will live in these dwellings; and therefore, they should be designed to meet people’s needs and contribute to their wellness.