WRITTEN BY ELIZABETH RHODES

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	This West Seattle triplex condominium building, on a narrow site facing Puget Sound, stairsteps upward and backward both to meet the zoning code and to provide outdoor entertaining decks.

Architect: Philip Christofides of Arellano/Christofides Architects

Builder: Constructive Energy

Construction cost/size: $2.05 million total/three condo units ranging from 1,700 to 2,800 square feet

The intent: To design a top-floor unit for the owners, real-estate agents and developers Tom and Nancy Roth, above two for-sale units ($1.3 million each) that are actually larger than the Roths'. The building is across the street from West Seattle's Alki Beach. "I think the thing to appreciate is that the (owners') unit is, in a way, a bonus," says Christofides. "We squeaked it inside the zoning envelope and squeaked in the mezzanine." That 500-square-foot mezzanine is used as a loft bedroom open to the main living area below.

The owners' spacious roof deck was designed for entertaining. Left: The building developers' top-floor unit has an "industrial loft aesthetic" that showcases their extensive art collection. A mezzanine level sits above the main floor.