This eye-catching mixed-use project – student housing above sidewalk retail that is treated as a Disneyesque cliff face -- prompted spirited debate. It deserves recognition for the novelty of the faux cliff façade and the cliff’s very realistic detailing. The theme-park treatment of the base enlivens the street while the relationship between the rock face base and the randomly historicist upper floors remain unresolved and shows less attention to detail.

When viewed from a distance, as you drive north along Telegraph, the cliff face draws particular attention. The contrast with its eclectic urban context is extreme, and yet brings to mind fanciful storybook designs from Berkeley’s past, such as W. R. Yelland’s Hansel-and-Gretel style Normandy Terrace.