Photo: Tim Bies / Olson Kundig

Delta Shelter

Mazama, Washington

This 1,000‑square‑foot cabin is essentially a steel‑clad box on stilts that can be completely shuttered when the owner is away. The 200‑square‑foot footprint of the house rises above a 40‑acre, 100‑year flood plain adjacent to the Methow River.

Design Concept

The verticality, coloring and raw nature of the materials used for construction directly respond to the wildness of the setting. The owner sought a compact, easy to maintain, virtually

The cabin is composed of three levels: the lowest level is half carport, half utility/storage room; the middle level consists of the entry, two small bedrooms and bathrooms; and the top level is one large space which includes living, dining and cooking areas. Cantilevered steel decks extend from the top and middle levels and provide space for outdoor sleeping and entertaining.

The cabin is supported by four steel columns. Floors are 3‑inch by 6‑inch tongue‑and‑groove wood car‑decking, and exterior wood infill walls are clad in 16‑gauge, hot‑rolled steel sheets with exposed steel fasteners. Most of the structure, including the steel structure, roof panels, shutters, and stairs, was prefabricated off‑site, thereby reducing on‑site waste and site disruption. Due to prefabrication and the use of plywood for all interior surfaces, typical construction waste was kept to a minimum.

I edited the cabin down to the basics: wood and metal. The landscape seen from within is much more important than how the building is seen from the landscape.Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA
Design Principal

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