Blackbirds / Bestor Architecture

Architects: Bestor Architecture
Area: 1930 ft²
Year: 2015
Photographs: Iwan Baan, Laure Joliet
Manufacturers: AXOR, C.R. Laurence, Hansgrohe, Owens Corning, Acor, American Universal, Arcadia Custom, Benjamin Moore, Brendan Ravenhill, Cal – Royal, Daltile, James Hardie, Kohler, Lithonia Lighting, Nest, Nevamar, Rohl, Solar Industries, Titan Metal Fabricators, Titan Sheet Metal, +1
M/E/P Engineer: Shamim Engineering
Landscape Architect: Mia Lehrer + Associates
Civil Engineer: CRC Enterprises
General Contractor: Pacific Empire Builders
Products used in this Project: Bathroom Collection – AXOR Uno by AXOR
Branding/Logo: Bestor Architecture
Structural Engineer: Nishkian Chamberlain
Client: LocalConstruct
Branding / Logo: Bestor Architecture
City: Los Angeles
Country: United States

Blackbirds, designed by Bestor Architecture, is a cluster of 18 homes in Los Angeles’ Echo Park neighborhood, offering a progressive solution for high-quality, dense housing. The homes, each 1,930 square feet or less, are arranged around a central “living street” that serves as both a landscaped courtyard and a community space. The design incorporates “stealth density,” merging multiple homes into single volumes to blend with the neighborhood’s traditional aesthetic. Set within a drought-tolerant landscape, the project promotes community interaction and sustainable living, with features like rainwater collection and expansive windows for natural light and ventilation.

Blackbirds is a cluster of 18 homes situated in the bohemian hills of Los Angeles’ Echo Park neighborhood. Designed by Bestor Architecture, this multi-house development offers a progressive solution for high-quality, dense housing in a city with limited available land. The homes, each 1,930 square feet or less, include a mix of two and three-bedroom units. They are organized around a living street—a central courtyard that features both landscaped and parking areas, and serves as a venue for community events and play.

The arrangement of the houses in the hills emulates the early 20th-century craftsman cabins of the area, employing a strategy of “stealth density.” This involves combining several houses into a single house-shaped volume. For example, two free-standing houses are connected by flashing, and the roofline creates the illusion of a single house mass. Similarly, three houses appear as two due to masked separations. This approach maintains the neighborhood’s shape and landscape context while concealing the actual density of units across the 0.82-acre site. The 18 houses are set in a drought-tolerant landscape with mature trees, seamlessly integrating into the surrounding neighborhood fabric. The community thoughtfully blends private, semi-private, and public spaces, fostering connections among neighbors and encouraging interaction and exchange. The design emphasizes a higher quality of life within an urban context by promoting neighborly interactions, linking units with native landscaping, and achieving medium density with sensitive scale and massing.

The homes feature expansive windows offering city and mountain views, allowing abundant natural light and ventilation in Los Angeles’ temperate climate. The shared “street” is slightly sloped to collect and filter rainwater for site irrigation.