Design Draw Build Architects & Builders

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Design Draw Build Architects & Builders

Architect-led design-build firm delivering warm, modern architecture from concept to construction.

San Francisco | Oakland | Silicon Valley | Northern California Master Planning
Building Architecture
Interior Design
Strategy
Programming
Graphic and Environmental Design
Interactive Technology Design
Exhibit Design
Set Design
Custom Furniture/Fixture Design
Product Design
Web Design
Construction Services
General Contracting Services

Project Support:
Photorealistic Rendering
Drawing Coordination
Conceptual Modeling
Code Analysis
Project Estimating
Master Planning
Construction Documents

Fabrication:
Custom Interior Fit Up
Furniture
Fabrication
Custom Built Elements
Shop Built Prefabrication
Interactive Art Installations
Unique Built-In Components

10/01/2026

We’re thrilled to share that Lightwell House has received an Honorable Mention in the Single Family category of the 2026 Metropolis Magazine Planet Positive Awards.

Lightwell House demonstrates that sustainability and financial value can be mutually reinforcing. Designed to operate beyond net-zero, the home generates more energy than it consumes, returning surplus power to the grid and reducing long-term operating costs. Durable, low-maintenance materials and high-efficiency systems further minimize lifecycle expenses.

Capturing the family’s imaginative spirit, the design challenged conventional practices with architect-led design-build processes. Integrating a savvy client into the design and build team, the result is an enduring home with curated craft that responds to the evolving rhythms of the Bay Area climate.

Thank you to our clients, collaborators, and the DDB team (past and present) who brought this project to life. And thank you to Metropolis Magazine for recognizing Lightwell House among this year’s Planet Positive projects. It is an honor to participate in pushing sustainability forward through the built environment.

Explore the project:
https://metropolismag.com/planet-positive-awards/lightwell-house/

09/14/2026

We’re honored to share that both of our submitted projects have been nominated for the 2026 AIA East Bay Design Awards!

Kinetic Pavilion in the Small Project, Structure Category — this building demonstrates how an ADU can have an outsized architectural impact by creating privacy, expanding usable living space, and transforming a leftover backyard into a second living room.

Lightwell House in the Single Family Category — design-built around connectivity and outdoor living, this ground up Menlo Park home captures a family’s imaginative spirit while taking it beyond net zero sustainability.

Thank you to the illustrious jury and AIA East Bay for recognizing our work alongside so many talented architects.

09/03/2026

We had a great weekend celebrating the ribbon cutting of Odyssey Physical Therapy in Emeryville.

It was especially rewarding to see patients, team members, and physical therapists engaging with the space and making it their own.

Thank you to everyone who helped bring this project to life—we’re grateful to have been part of it. Here’s to many years of healing, movement, and community at Odyssey!

08/18/2026

We’re thrilled to share that two DDB Architects & Builders projects, Lightwell House and Agualta STEAM Engine have been selected as finalists for the Metropolis Magazine 's 2026 Planet Positive Awards.

It is an honor to be included amongst an esteemed group of international firms and architects shaping a more sustainable future. Lightwell House is an enduring family home, while Agualta STEAM Engine offers an optimistic vision for the future of secondary schools — offering two distinct approaches to environmentally responsible design.

A heartfelt thank you to the incredible collaborators, current, and former employees who helped bring these projects to life.

Stay tuned for the winners to be announced on September 30 at the Center for Architecture + Design in San Francisco!

07/31/2026

Two years in the making—we are beyond thrilled to celebrate our friends and clients at Enssaro Ethiopian Restaurant on the grand opening of their brand-new, permanent home in Rockridge!

For 20 years, Enssaro has been a true Oakland institution. When our team came on board, the mission was clear: reimagine a space that honors their incredible legacy, reveres the richness of Ethiopian traditions while building a foundation for the next generation. All while embodying the family spirit and recipes their Grand Avenue location brought to the community.

It was a true joy to work with the owner-family team. With talented Kalu Gebreyohannes-Royster of Liyu Designs, we helped bring an Afro-modern vision to life at the corner of College & Chabot—combining thoughtful architecture with warm, handcrafted details.

We cannot wait to see the space nourish eaters from across the Bay Area. Go check out the best Ethiopian food at their new 5897 College Avenue location!

07/11/2026

Originally built in 1925, the Parkway Theater has evolved from a classic single-screen cinema into one of Oakland's most beloved entertainment venues. Selected by the developer, we led a four-year restoration that included Planning Commission approvals and multiple permitting phases with the thoughtful reimagining of this historic landmark.
Our team played a key role in restoring the theater's iconic exterior and historic marquee. We were tasked with preserving the facade's architectural character while adapting it for the theatre’s new era. Today, the Parkway serves as a vibrant destination with a private theater, lounge, and event space that welcomes up to 500 guests for community gatherings and music. Stay tuned for more historic and adaptive reuse projects coming from DDB!

06/19/2026

Every custom home begins with exploration.
Starting with sketches and collages, we began applying materials to the Lightwell House massing. We tested distinct material textures to uncover the new relationships they formed on the Menlo Park home’s facade.
These early sketched studies are an important part of our iterative design process.
Each iteration helped the clients visualize possibilities while giving our team the freedom to refine designs before they become a part of the built environment.

06/06/2026

Today we celebrated the ribbon cutting of the new Children’s Story Room at the Berkeley Public Library Central Branch! Located on the fourth floor of the historic Library, the reimagined Story Room transforms an underutilized area into a vibrant destination for children, families, literacy programming, and community gatherings. Inspired by the warmth and wonder of a forest glade filled with books and fun—the space creates an inviting environment that encourages imaginative exploration and learning.

It was an honor to partner with the Berkeley Public Library , Berkeley Public Library Foundation, ABA Studios Architects, the City of Berkeley, and the hundreds of donors whose generosity helped bring this vision to life.

As architects and builders, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing a space come alive with the people it was designed to serve. We look forward to bringing our own families of young readers, families, and the broader Berkeley community to make this space their own for years to come.

Congratulations to everyone who made this special project possible!

05/21/2026

Sonoma Commons transforms a series of unpermitted agricultural and storage structures into a vibrant mixed-use development that brings 177 units of affordable multifamily housing and retail spaces to the community.
Design Draw Build led the master planning and served as Architect for the full-scale redevelopment of the site and its adjacent structures—converting simple wood-frame agricultural shells into fully code-compliant buildings with comprehensive structural retrofits, new roofing, HVAC systems, fire safety, and accessibility upgrades throughout.
The project pairs modern design with a regional sensibility through the use of locally sourced wood, creating a warm and inviting character while helping reduce the embodied carbon impacts of construction. Solar-ready roof surfaces were carefully integrated into the building form to remain concealed from street level.
As part of the redevelopment, DDB also designed new parking, outdoor gathering spaces with wood trellises, accessible restrooms, and tenant improvements for the primary retail space.

05/14/2026

Garden View ADU is designed to nestle modestly into the client’s abundant permaculture garden while feeling spacious with framed views and abundant natural light. The award-winning ADU is thoughtfully positioned in the client’s backyard to preserve the existing redwood trees and privacy for the neighbors. Built to celebrate the permaculture garden’s natural beauty, the ADU’s design prioritizes indoor-outdoor living. A grand accordion glass door opens onto the wooden deck and the spacious kitchen houses a service counter that allows you to sit indoors or outdoors on either side. Rooted in its natural surroundings, this curated addition to a generational home supports the family’s future while celebrating the site’s ecological values. The synergies between the ADU, existing home, garden, communal neighborhood and landscape underscore how architecture can nurture both people and the planet.

Address

2866 Webster Street
Oakland, CA
94609

Website

http://www.designdrawbuild.com/

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