Chart House. The Chart House Restaurant lies aside highway 111 in the city of Rancho Mirage, you can't miss it. The building is one of the most organic structures in America. It is also a prime example of the (unfortunately) long out of vogue 70's style of earth sheltered building. A friend once described the building as a roof lying on the side of the road. I view it as some sort of prehistoric sea creature beached in Rancho Mirage, its bones bleaching in the sun. Inside the analogy is even more striking, as you feel like a perverse Noah eating your sea creatures inside a sea creature.

A day at the Tram is just an all around wonderful day and the fun starts at the station a bustling hub of activity. With it's soaring ceiling and walls of glass looking out at the tracks (cables) it feels European, as one might expect from an Austrian building what is essentially a train station. The station is in some jeopardy, as the owners, who recently paid off the mortgage, start thinking about way to maximize income and make the experience more Disneyesque.

Palm Springs City Hall. California has a fine tradition of innovative and modern civic architecture. Palm Springs City Hall is an especially fine structure and perfectly adapted to its site and especially its climate. The barrel shaped sun screens along the front make the building cool and inviting on even the sunniest day.

The Cree House II, a rather modest house with a great view. Quite obvious from Highway 111, it is behind and above the Volcano. Incidentally the building in front of the volcano, I don't know what its called this week ,was originally Romonoffs on the Rocks the Palm Springs branch of the famous Hollywood eateries. And even though you can't tell it now it was originally a modernist glass cube designed by A. Quincey Jones, quite a loss in view of what it was replaced with

---

As you enter Palm Springs you can't miss the Tramway Gas Station as it commands the entrance to the city. This building was fought over bitterly by the City Council and Preservationist. It seems to be safe now and is destin to become an art gallery.

Frey House II is a tiny gem of a house set way above the city of Palm Springs. A glass and steel cube with a decidedly Miesien slant. After Frey's death at the end of 1998 it is my understanding that the house was left to the Desert Museum

Kaufman House. The Kaufman House is Neutras Masterpiece; the great architect and a bottomless pocket patron (Kaufman, of Falling Water Kaufman) come together in a house of unparalleled modernism and sophistication. Now fully restored it will soon take its rightful place amongst the five most important house of the 20th century. (Falling Water, Robie House, Gropius House, Kaufman House, Gambell House)

Bank of America. Positioned in the crux of a fork in Highway 111 where Palm Canyon and Indian Canyon each become one way. The B of A is especially dramatic traveling east, rearing up in front of you and positioned as it is where the roads split. This is undoubtedly one of the most dramatic buildings in Palm Springs, perhaps in all of Southern California. It is of a style not often seen in the United States. This building would feel more at home in South America than Palm Springs. It is by far the most playful building in the desert, which tends towards a more international style formalism.

The top Tramway station is by Stewart Williams and is of a sedate but soposificated style befitting the scenery. It's a wonderful place to hangout. The top station like the bottom one is in danger of being redeveloped and themed, see it while you can an let the management know how much you enjoy the building.

What is now known as the Starbucks building is the architectural offices of Stewart Williams, the second floor with all the windows. This building is proof that good design can be popular, people are attracted to this building like a magnet, other newer buildings nearby with red tile roofs and a Spanish flare have high turnover and no business. Be sure to look at the staircase in the back of the building, staircases are something of a Williams trademark, find a wild staircase in PS and you find a building by Stewart Williams.

When I first saw this building I would of sworn it was designed by Edward Durrell Stone, and I was convinced of that until I researched it. On the side in back is another great Stewart Williams staircases. Banks are some of the finest examples of Modern Architecture in the State of California and some of the most endangered buildings, because of mergers. Washington Mutual is, as I write this, in negations with RiteAid Drugstores to sell them all of the Millard Sheets designed Home Savings Banks.

Streamlined Modern at its most imposing, this building is a ship of the desert. Recently the building, while under restoration caught on fire and was severely damaged. Luckily its dedicated owner plans to continue the restoration

Architectural Record House in 1994 it has been featured in dozens of publications. Literally out in the middle of nowhere it commands an imposing position and view outside the city of Joshua Tree, at the entrance to the national park. The colors have to be seen to be believed. A wonderfully playful piece building on a wonderful site.

Institute of Mental Physics. This is the largest single collection of Lloyd Wright Buildings in the United States. A national treasure it lies in a state of disrepair more sad and spooky than a testament to Lloyd Wright and his accomplishments. Still quite impressive as a whole and despite the decay Wright's genius shines through. This grouping of buildings should be as important and on a par with the senior Wrights Florida Southern College his largest single project, yet sadly it languishes in obscurity and decay.

---

Another Lloyd Wright building, unfortunately not much is left of it, just a tower on Palm Canyon and a bit of facade. When it was built it was referred to as the most beautiful building in California, alas its beauty didn't protect it.

Together Jones and Williams built several buildings in Palm Springs, but few remain. The Town and Country in it's time was the place to go down town. You can still see what it was like if you go into the courtyard not much is visible from Palm Canyon. 

Hicks Center by Stewart Williams is a sedate and calm business structure at fast becoming fashionable Mid Palm Canyon Area. To my shock shortly after I took these pictures in late summer the entire structure was destroyed by fire. A Great loss to Palm Canyon. Across the street is the recently restored Sampson Building by Clark and Frey one of the oldest modernist structures in Palm Springs.

---

One of six houses built by Donald Wexler for Alexander Homes. An experiment in steel construction it proved to be too expensive.The only Palm Springs Houses to be an Architectural Record House.

 

 

---

To my knowledge the now Crown Books building on Palm Canyon is one of only two award winning building in Palm Springs (1960 Architectural Record Citation). The other is the Donald Wexler Steel Houses, Record House 62

This is the James Bond "Diamonds are Forever" House, a massive concrete circus tent with a commanding view of all of Palm Springs. The house was built for the interior designer Author Elrod, who was interior decorator to the stars