Reviving a 'Lost' Icon of Organic Architecture in Encinitas, Calif.

[Celerity]

A renovation of a Kendrick Bangs Kellogg house aimed to honor its past while evolving it for the future.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/13/realestate/kendricks-bang-kellogg-encinitas-regenerative-renovation.html?unlocked_article_code=1.xlA.i4jd.w3mQ67ywVCwz&smid=url-share


Regenerative design principles informed the renovation of a modernist 1970s house in Southern California.

Mel Meagher has long admired organic architecture, a modern movement that emphasizes harmony between a building and its site. No two examples are alike. “I’ve always been drawn to it for the way it balances the natural world with human existence,” Mx. Meagher said. “It never is black and white, but lies beyond the dualistic and in the beauty of context and intuition.” In 2022, Mx. Meagher, who uses they/them pronouns and has a background in real estate development, was searching for a place that would become their next home and project. They saw an online listing for a home with a detached two-bedroom guesthouse in Encinitas, Calif., north of San Diego, and immediately scheduled a visit.


Mel Meagher is the founder of Unfold Projects, a regenerative design consultancy. The clay candleholder is by Laura Huerta. Adelsman Custom Cabinetry fabricated the kitchen millwork and the counter stools are by Nicholas Pourfard. Credit...Justin Chung

The three-bedroom, 2,500-square-foot property’s dramatic barrel-vault roofs, windows and balconies with views to the ocean, and hand-carved mahogany details reminded them of organic architecture. Then Mx. Meagher learned that the house, built in the 1970s, was a collaboration between Kendrick Bangs Kellogg, one of Southern California’s defining practitioners of the style, who died in 2024 at age 90; his daughter Shanna Kellogg; and the builder Pat McGriff, who was married to Shanna. “I walked in and you could feel Kendrick Kellogg’s spirit and energy,” Mx. Meagher said.

However, subsequent owners had renovated the house with a Southeast Asian aesthetic. They painted over original millwork, introduced new clashing finishes and added walls that interrupted the flow of space, but Mx. Meagher saw potential to restore this example of organic architecture. “The house had lost its way,” Mx. Meagher said. “My mind was searching for this literal unfolding of the spaces because so much was covered up or not appreciated for the original design intent.”







Mx. Meagher conceived of their role not as the house’s owner, but as its latest steward. They are a practitioner of regenerative design, an approach to building that aspires to enhance natural ecosystems and social cohesion. It goes a step beyond sustainability, which seeks to minimize impact. To gain a stronger understanding of the house, Mx. Meagher tracked down Mr. McGriff, who spent nearly a decade working on the house with Ms. Kellogg while they lived in it. He walked Mx. Meagher through the original plans and described some of the things they had hoped to do but weren’t able to. He also gave Mx. Meagher permission to reinterpret the space. “He said, ‘Take what I did and use that to help restore it, but it’s yours to finish,’” Mx. Meagher said.