CASITA

1,100 SF  Urban Accessory Dwelling  •  San Antonio TX •  2025

Cotton Estes Architect & Estes Twombly + Titrington Architects 

Contractor: Long House Builders

Photographer: Dror Baldinger, FAIA

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The Casita is a discreet accessory dwelling unit and painting studio tucked into a tight-knit neighborhood downtown. Sandwiched between two-story neighbors, the home comprises a series of inward-looking structures and courtyards along the central axis of the original double shot-gun style home.

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Large barn doors provide secure, independent parking off the alley and allow for flexible privacy between inhabitants. Full-width sliding doors and pergolas line the courtyards, providing diffuse light and seamless outdoor connections. Linear skylights line the solid outer walls, providing high, focused light as a counterpoint to the landscape views.

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Nearly invisible from the street, the Casita leverages the entire site to create a lush, adaptable, and comfortable home for a multi-generational family. Through careful consideration of the site and its inhabitants, the small home amounts to more than the sum of its parts.

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The New York Times Jun. 22, 2026  "This Backyard A.D.U. Is Multigenerational by Design" by Tim McKeough

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