Cité I Designs
Architecture · Interiors · Visualization
Designing your dreams with a balance of know-how and creativity
Explore Our WorkWelcome to Cité I Designs
Cité Designs is a one-stop shop for architectural design services to help you make your dreams come true with a savvy balance of know-how and creativity. Our approach is straightforward and collaborative, with design tools that facilitate visualization and understanding of a project throughout the process. We focus on listening and working with you to create a feasible plan. Our experience and background allow us to take on a wide range of projects and scopes. Our team is committed to delivering on budget and on time.
Services
One-stop shop design services. Click any service to learn more.
Full-service architectural design for new construction, additions, and remodels. We take projects from the first concept sketches through permit-ready construction drawings, working closely with structural engineers and systems consultants along the way so the design you love is also the design that gets built.
- Residential: single-family, multi-family, mixed use
- Custom modern and Mediterranean-style homes
- Additions, remodels, and whole-house reconfigurations
- Bidding sets, construction drawings, and permit applications
- Collaboration with contractors and engineers throughout
Interior design and remodel services that rethink how you live in your space. Kitchen and bath remodels, full-floor reconfigurations, and everything in between. We focus on flow, light, and material palettes that feel timeless and age well.
- Kitchen and bath remodels
- Whole-interior reconfigurations and finishes
- Lighting, millwork, and custom built-ins
- MEP coordination (mechanical, electrical, plumbing)
- 3D visualization of interior spaces before construction
California's housing laws have made ADUs easier than ever to permit and build. We handle attached, detached, and garage conversion ADUs, from feasibility study through building permit, with designs tuned to your lot, your budget, and how you plan to use the space.
- Attached, detached, and junior ADUs (JADUs)
- Garage and accessory structure conversions
- Zoning analysis and expedited permit pathways
- Designs optimized for rental income or multigenerational use
- Coordination with local jurisdictions across the Bay Area
Visualization isn't a costly add-on at Cité Designs. It's baked into how we work. Using SketchUp and Layout, we build your project as a 3D model from day one, so you can walk through your home and see every material and sightline before the first wall goes up.
- Photorealistic exterior and interior renderings
- Walkthroughs and animations for presentations
- Real-time design changes reflected across all views
- Material, lighting, and furniture studies
- Shared 3D models for contractors and engineers
Structural and systems engineering coordination that keeps your design buildable, code compliant, and on budget. We partner with trusted engineers and bring their input into the design early, so there are no surprises when the project hits permit review or breaks ground.
- Structural engineering coordination
- Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) integration
- Title 24 and energy-compliance strategy
- Civil and site engineering for grading/drainage
- Coordination with geotechnical and fire-protection consultants
Our Process
Designing into the Future
While forward thinking, our design approach is sound with optimized tools and advanced technology to ensure work efficiency as well as lower costs. Our workflow primarily uses a single software platform to handle project deliverables from standard plan sets to 3D visualization. In the early stage of the project and all the way through the process, you will be able to fully understand the design in multi-dimensions like in real life. With Cité Designs, the visualization of the project is an integral part of the process, not an optional costly add-on service.
An Innovative and Cutting-Edge Workflow
To optimize its services, Cité Designs has adopted the SketchUp & Layout for Architecture workflow. SketchUp & Layout for Architecture has been developed by the best experts in the field. This workflow belongs to the latest generation of design tools that allow to approach design in all its dimensions from the get-go. Instead of a series of 2-dimensional drawings, your project is a virtual 3D design. At the center is a 3D model from which will be generated all standard drafting views such as floor plans, elevations, and sections. Changes to design are integrated in real time, making the process more fluid and more interactive.
ADUs
Additional Dwelling Units
Most cities and counties in California make it easier for homeowners to consider adding units to their property. Additional square footage and expedited process are by law required for this type of project. Given the state of housing in California cities, this is a good solution to provide additional units on the market as well as helping homeowners invest in their properties, increase available floor area (e.g. to add a workspace), and long-term planning options for additional source of income. Depending on each situation, an ADU might be within an existing building or structure, an addition, or a detached structure in most cases in the rear side of the property. Overall many design options are available to adapt to a variety of conditions and owners' needs.
Attached ADUs
Conveniently, attached ADUs can be a conversion of non-habitable space (e.g. garages), or additional space allowing to increase property square footage and new unit opportunities.
What Clients Say
Contact
Let's get started!
Bay Area
2940 Camino Diablo Suite #112Walnut Creek, CA 94598