1906 Apalachee

Custom-built home in South Lake Tahoe, California with sweeping mountain views.

Mountain Modern Custom Home in South Lake Tahoe

This Tahoe dream house took the place of a 70’s tear-down. It’s got stucco instead of siding, a cut-and-stack roof instead of trusses, a whole-house back-up generator, miles of decks, views for days and a den that could house an entire soccer team.

Front porch of a house with a wooden railing, black garage door, exterior wall with door and window, and outdoor wall lanterns.
A mountain view through trees, with a house partially visible on the left, and snow-capped mountains in the background under a mostly clear blue sky.
A wooden house on stilts among tall pine trees, featuring a red exterior, black trim, a large deck with black railings, and a garage door.
A person operating a John Deere excavator demolishes a wooden house in a forested area with tall pine trees.

The original house on Apalachee had fallen into disrepair and a remodel wasn’t feasible. Tahoe houses take a lot of abuse and many of the houses built in the 70’s weren’t designed or built to last all that long. The land and views were still very desirable so this house was purchased with the intent of tearing it down completely and starting from scratch.

The demolition was a delight to witness. You know when you open up a playhouse to see all the rooms inside? It was like that! But with a giant claw and lots of splintered wood.

Watching the old house come down I couldn’t help but think of all the memories made within those walls: feet on the staircase, pots in the kitchen, snowy slumbers and Summer picnic packing. But all those memories were as faded as the green carpet and it was time to build something new.

After demo, upon exposing the original foundation, the engineer realized that it would in no way support the new structure. Not even part of it. I’m wondering how in the world that was surprising. But it was! Construction was put on hold while a new foundation was designed and routed through the building department for approval. The new foundation was gigantic and beefy, framed with precision and poured with the muscle and acuity of eight capable men.

Demo day, foundation day and truss day are my favorites. They are a performance that has to be flawless and last for a hundred years.

Construction workers building a multi-level concrete foundation on a dirt hillside surrounded by trees and residential houses.
A blue house with a metal roof on a cleared lot with some patches of grass, surrounded by trees under a cloudy sky.

The roof also supported two solar panels that were used for the hot water heater instead of propane. Natural gas is not available and the cost of electric power is very high in Hawai’i so LED lighting and the solar panels mitigated this expense. More solar panels could potentially alleviate the need for grid power entirely.

Blue two-story house with white trim and a metal roof, featuring an external staircase leading to a porch on the second floor, set on a landscaped lot with trees in the background.
Interior of a finished basement with blue walls, ceiling, and carpet of small red stones, with sliding glass doors leading outside to a stairway and yard.
Underground space with gravel floor, blue walls, and stairs leading to the outside surrounded by trees.

Underneath the living space a carport and massive storage area provided ample storage space. In Hawai’i the elements are relentless. Covered space is a coveted necessity for tools, gardening supplies, lumber and belongings. Nothing can be left outdoors unless it’s utterly indestructible.

Instead of a traditional garage, Peter opted to create covered parking and garden supply storage with two spaces that were easy to access but also protected from rain. Adjacent was a fully enclosed space with a concrete floor that was used to store tools and building materials, house the water filtration system and provide space for gear and other personal belongings.

A tiled shower with beige natural stone tiles, a pebble floor, a small window, and a black showerhead.
Empty walk-in shower with beige tiled walls and black fixtures, and a partial view of a toilet and a small cabinet in a bathroom.
Bathroom with a black vessel sink, a marble countertop, white cabinetry, a mirror, a window, and a toilet.

The bathrooms featured natural stone, slate, wood and granite. The focus on high contrast throughout the house was continued with black fixtures, white cabinets and white walls. In the larger bathroom, the shower and floor featured light colored stone and in the half bath a darker slate was used on the floor. Cedar trim and built-in shelving completed the custom look.

Bathroom with a vanity mirror, black vessel sink, black faucet, wooden countertop, white cabinet, a wall-mounted light fixture with three bulbs, and a shower area with beige tile walls and pebble floor.
Empty room with hardwood floors, white walls, wooden window frames, and a ceiling fan with four wooden blades.
Empty room with white walls, three large windows with wooden frames, wood flooring, and a ceiling fan.

Three bedrooms each featured vaulted ceilings, wood floors, cedar-trimmed windows, custom-built closets and track lighting. Peter had noticed that with ceiling fans always running in Hawai’i houses, a pulsing effect was created with recessed lighting in the ceiling. He opted to use track lighting placed lower than the ceiling fan to avoid the strobe effect.

Empty room with hardwood floors, white walls, a ceiling fan, and a window, with shelves built into a small alcove.
Empty room with wooden flooring, white walls, a large window with wooden trim, and a ceiling fan with wooden blades.

Wooden jalousie style slats were installed above all the bedroom doors to enhance air flow while maintaining privacy.

Closet doors were scrapped and the tops of the closets remained open and trimmed instead of covered with more framing and drywall. In this area of the Big Island, mold is a guarantee without enough air flow to keep walls and belongings dry. Closed in closets become the perfect environment to ruin clothes instead of preserve them! This method created a container for organization that could still breathe.

A lot of mainland expectations don’t make sense in a tropical climate. Although Hawai’i is adopting many building codes from the mainland, the design and function of a Hawai’i house should be centered around this very unique environment.

While the architectural design was far simpler than the Tahoe houses that have come before it, this house proved to be ideal for the climate and equipped with ample storage. It was one of the most unique and well-built houses in the neighborhood and had a full-price offer within two weeks of being listed.

Empty room with two windows, wooden trim, ceiling fan, and wood flooring.
Empty room with light-colored walls, wooden trim around windows and closet, wood flooring, a ceiling fan, and a view of trees outside the window.

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