VADU IN THE NEWS: San Rafael couple’s ADU designed for all stages of life

By PJ Bremier | pj@pjbremier.com | IJ correspondent
PUBLISHED: September 27, 2024 Marin Independent Journal
 

When Roberta Steiner and her husband, Allan Farovitch, purchased their new Cape Cod contemporary in San Rafael’s Lucas Valley Estates neighborhood 30 years ago, they left behind a 1930s Edwardian home in San Francisco.

Their future was now about embracing the Marin lifestyle and the rearing of their two young boys, then ages 4 and 6.

“We loved the new construction and the quiet, beautiful open spaces,” Steiner says. “Also, it was suitable for us to build a swimming pool.”

At the time, the couple sure wasn’t thinking about the golden years.

That changed when they recently began planning for the future and wanted to be able to age in place by having separate quarters, in the form of an ADU, or accessory dwelling unit, for a long-term caregiver if the time came.

They had spoken to a few architects but, after a referral from a friend, they decided to hire Margaret Carrigan Nau, the co-founder of VADU.

VADU is a Marin full-service company that creates and installs custom ADUs and also helps homeowners rent out their ADUs.

According to VADU’s website, the company “manages as little or as much as is wanted with research, site work, financing, permits, zoning, design and rental to ensure a quality result and smooth outcome of a complex process.”


“As the project manager, Margaret met with us to ask what we wanted and how the ADU would fit our needs, our budget and our style,” Steiner says. “She worked with the architect and shepherded the project through the county permitting.”

“She also interfaced with the contractor, landscape designer and interior design teams to make sure we were satisfied with the outcome,” Steiner adds.

It was important to both Farovitch and Steiner that the project didn’t negatively impact their neighbors.

“We discussed with them the project from the beginning,” she says. “We wanted to make sure we were considerate of our next-door neighbors and friends for 30 years, and to make sure that we built something nice in keeping with the quality of the homes in the neighborhood.”

She also didn’t want to encroach too much into her property’s backyard, so the ADU was designed with its own entrance at the side of their house near the garage.

The result is a versatile, attached 550-square-foot ADU, which can open to the house or be closed off for privacy. It has one bedroom large enough for a king-sized bed, a bathroom and a combined living and dining area and kitchen.

It can be used now for their visiting adult children and grandchildren and, in the future, for caregivers.

“One additional item I wanted for myself was storage,” Steiner says. “There’s an abundance of storage in the ADU. The entry, bedroom and laundry area all have built-in cabinets or closets and the attached walkway from the house to the ADU has storage closets.”

The 16-foot-high ceiling, clad in a whitewashed knotty pine, along with transom windows and skylights, fills the space with natural light and gives the ADU a sense of volume and airiness.

Uplighting near the ceiling in both the kitchen and bedroom and under-cabinet lighting in the bathroom thoughtfully illuminate spaces that are often forgotten.

Inside the compact kitchen, there’s a Summit induction cooktop and slim line refrigerator, a Fisher & Paykel dishwasher drawer, an over counter Samsung microwave/convection oven and a small sink with an integrated wood-cutting board top.

Steiner opted for solid white oak wide plank flooring, and for paint, chose Benjamin Moore White Dove for the interior and Benjamin Moore Plymouth Brown for the exterior.

Bay Area architect Joe Lambert designed the ADU to have a roofline similar to that of the main house, which visually ties together the two structures. (Gannon Construction Co. of San Rafael was the general contractor.)

Lambert and Nau “found a unique piece of wood that we had custom-made for the reading and study nook in the bedroom,” Steiner says. “It adds a nice natural element to the home.”

The addition of the ADU led Steiner and Farovitch to make some garden changes and, for those, they turned to Katie Caradec for help.

“The backyard entry was moved to the opposite corner, which necessitated an entry path, gate and backyard entertainment area, which we call our ‘art plaza,'” Steiner says. “The ADU has its own very nice entrance with pavers and new landscaping at the side of our garage.”

She also enjoys the views from the ADU’s living area: looking out past the lawn, graced with sculptures, and toward the pool and the rolling Lucas Valley hills beyond.

As for the process, it took a year and a half from design to completion and there was always the opportunity to make changes along the way.

The permit process was challenging but Nau and Lambert handled it with the county until its successful conclusion.

For Steiner, it was worth the effort.

“The ADU is not a nondescript box,” she says. “People to whom I have shown it were pleasantly surprised that it’s a charming house, and it makes it immensely worthwhile to do a custom project.”

Because of the complexities of the process, Nau encourages “people to hire an ADU specialist to help guide the project through all stages and to address questions, concerns, issues and problems that arise with construction.”

“Also, be prepared for cost overruns and change orders,” she adds.

And, for Steiner and Farovitch, it also meant being prepared for an unexpected bonus.

“Working with Margaret was an easy, helpful and positive experience,” Steiner says. “She was available and on-site frequently.”

And, she adds, “we made a friend and see each other socially.”