• A new condominium complex with as many units as possible.
• Character to fit the Kirkwood vernacular of single family residences and mature trees.
• Design the site to save the existing mature sycamore tree for which the complex would be named.
• Design for future additional units to the West if more land was purchased for a 2^nd phase.

• Small and oddly shaped, the site HAD to accommodate the required number of parking spaces, vehicular ramps, and minimum number of condominium units, and save the tree.
• Height restrictions dictated the total building footprints and adjacency proximities leaving what seemed inadequate space for the site work.
• The location of the sycamore tree and the giant diameter of its drip line seemed impossible to accommodate.
• Breaking down the scale of a large, high density complex in order to complement the existing Kirkwood neighborhood character, scale and street frontage

• To design a small town or village on the site with personal out door spaces, porches, decks, a public space plaza for congregating. 
• A street façade both on the main street, as well as to the parking area, give the tree a dominant presence for identity.
• Resolve the site circulation shortage with a below grade, continuous, one-way parking garage linking 2 separate above grade buildings placed in an L shape. Resulting in 22 units. The two buildings are not connected above grade but rather, are linked by a plaza court yard which is the linking the garage roof deck.
• Set the building to the front yard in-keeping with the neighboring homes, bringing the parking to the rear and below grade.
• Break down building scale of a 3 story unit by creating the illusion of a 2 ½ story row of town homes and add the elements of the neighborhood to further break it down i.e. personal out door space.

Supporting Design features:

• The tree is maintained and creates a visual focus.
• Porches for personal exterior space to the front most typical of this neighborhood. Porches both to the city street as well as fronts to the back building. Decks as personal outdoor space for all the town homes above.
• Building design created front facades for both the parking lot and Monroe & Harrison Avenues.
• The buildings have 2 types of entrances. Those to the double wide garden units and those leading to a common stair shared by two single wide town home units stacked above.
• Multiple siding colors and roofing colors further define the individual condo units breaking the scale down further.
• The complex was designed for apartments to be easily converted and sold as condominiums at a later date without renovation. This actually took place before the construction was complete.
• Vehicular circulation is two-way traffic on site with complementary one-way traffic below grade.