Chabad UC Berkeley occupies a Julia Morgan house on Warring Street and also owns the neighboring property which is the site for a new building to expand amenities and create a campus.

Currently, services and gatherings are held in a trellised semi-outdoor structure at the rear of the historic house.

The new four-story multi-purpose building contains three levels of interconnected flexible space for prayer and gathering, new kitchen and dining facilities, and above, seven double-occupancy student residences.

Stairs, elevator and restrooms are positioned at front and rear, allowing the length of the building to remain open, adaptable, and unobstructed.

Between the Julia Morgan house and the new structure, a trellis connects the two buildings over a courtyard that steps with the natural topography, linking the buildings through a sequence of terraces onto which interior programs extend.

The language of the new building grows from the Craftsman character of the existing neighborhood and house, forming a coherent campus unified by the stepped courtyard that mediates and levels the ground between them.

The stair façade reveals the movement of ascent and becomes the Chabad menorah — a vertical marker of light, gathering, and ritual presence along Warring Street.

At the upper level, open circulation to the residences reduces the perceived mass of the building and allows it to complement the roofline of the adjacent house with rooms having south fenestration.

A perimeter wall along Warring Street encloses the campus and allows the exterior grounds to become occupied and programmed space for worship and gathering.