Pacific Palisades

Here are eight dramatically modern and large townhomes in a minimalist rectangular design by architect Jeremy Sturgess. Built in 2004 and '05 by Greystone Developments, all of these homes have four levels. They start with a basement, have an at-grade level of two-car parking, storage and mechanicals, then a wide-open living level with 10-foot ceilings and balcony with natural-gas supply, up again to the bedrooms level, and finally up to a roof-top deck, so I guess that's five levels if you include the roof deck. The development consists of two buildings and a secured courtyard. The west-facing front structure has drive-under access to the four double garages, while the back four homes have their double-car parking access off the lane.

Floor areas are generous. Totals including parking and utilities are 2,485 to 2,518 sq. ft. for six homes, and 3,008 sq. ft. for two more. Deduct the parking, utilities and basements to arrive at roughly either 1,700 or 1,900 sq. ft. of above-grade finished living space. Some of those basements are substantial too, though, ranging up to 500 sq. ft. Every suite has a small ground-floor covered area for the entranceway with a balcony above that, plus the roof deck, while the easterly four homes also have a large balcony over their garage entrances.

Finishings are all high end with rounded corners, one or two fireplaces, granite counters, hardwood floors, luxurious kitchens with gas cooktops, built-in shelving, built-in vacuums, luxury en-suite bathrooms, built-in speaker systems, skylights, and a few homes have central air conditioning. All homes have lots of light, what with the walls of glass, 10-foot living-level ceilings and the fact that the front four homes are all corner suites, while those in the back row have windows facing both east and west. Heck, even the garages each have a window, which gives light in there, but also brings life to otherwise blank walls. Exterior windows and doors are common property for maintenance and future replacement.