DMHA Architecture + Interior Design

With animal welfare and socially conscious sheltering as guiding principles, the new and upcoming campus for Santa Barbara Humane integrates biophilic design—connecting animals, staff, and visitors with nature to promote calm and wellness. Inspired by the site’s setting within the Goleta Slough watershed and historic Chumash lands, the design celebrates the landscape through native planting and water-sensitive design.

Curving pathways and open-air corridors invite a natural journey through the site, blurring boundaries between indoors and outdoors. Daylight, natural ventilation, and framed views of the surrounding landscape offer soothing sensory experiences. Organic materials, wave-like rooflines, and coastal color palettes echo the rhythms of Santa Barbara’s environment. We love working on this incredible project for an amazing client!

An inside look at the Primary Bedroom of our Marina Drive Residence. 😍

Photography by Erin Feinblatt.

We are thrilled for DMHA Senior Project Architect Matt Gries, AIA, who completed his term as AIA Santa Barbara Chapter President this past December. Thank you, Matt, for your dedication to our community. Your work reminds us that architecture is a form of advocacy and storytelling, and that AIA Santa Barbara serves as an invitation to actualize our potential and contribute to the story of our city.

Scenes from Marina Drive Residence, a modern home that showcases Pacific Ocean and Channel Island views from virtually every room. The exposed building structure and large overhanging roof draw one in upon arrival, leading to strategically placed and thoughtfully designed Living Pavilions.

Photography:
Landscape Designer: Rob Maday
General Contractor: Campbell Construction
Structural Engineer: Taylor & Syfan Engineering
Architecture: DMHA
Interior Design: DMHA

With animal welfare as the guiding principle, the new Santa Barbara Humane campus integrates biophilic design, connecting animals, staff, and visitors with nature to promote calm and wellness. Inspired by the site’s setting within the Goleta Slough watershed and historic Chumash lands, the design celebrates the landscape through native planting, habitat restoration, and water-sensitive design.

Curving pathways and open-air corridors invite a natural journey through the site, blurring boundaries between indoors and outdoors. Daylight, natural ventilation, and framed views of the surrounding landscape offer soothing sensory experiences. Organic materials, wave-like rooflines, and coastal color palettes echo the rhythms of Santa Barbara’s environment.

Since officially opening earlier this year, Linden Square has become a community gathering space. Great food, delicious drinks, and engaging events have brought people together.

Photography: Chade Jones Photography

We had the joy of working on this complete transformation of a 1950’s era historical ranch residence in the foothills near Santa Barbara. The project represents an aesthetic design revival of the original site compound and structures. The bones of the original building were solid, but a complete refresh of the exterior and interior was in tall order. thoughtfully designed a new landscape plan and a complete hardscape upgrade including a new pool, patio, fire pits, and retaining walls. The interiors of the project were reconfigured and designed to complement the client’s Southern California indoor/outdoor lifestyle by Rachael Goddard Design Studio.

Photography:
Landscape Architect:
Construction:

https://www.dmhaa.com/hope-ranch-redux

For the past four years, we’ve had the privilege of partnering with Santa Barbara Humane, one of the oldest animal welfare organizations in the country. To continue delivering exceptional care, their 60-year-old facilities required a complete transformation. The goal was to create a model campus for Socially Conscious Sheltering, a framework prioritizing the best outcomes for homeless pets by aligning with community needs, providing comprehensive care, and supporting the human-animal bond.

Our design process focused on the animals’ perspective and prioritized their experience, while ensuring the new facilities were sustainable and redesigned with operational efficiency. The new master plan replaces outdated facilities with over 40,000 square feet of state-of-the-art spaces for animal care, adoption, and community engagement, all while respecting the site’s historical context and ecological setting.

Read more about this incredible project in our latest blog article.

A New Vision for Santa Barbara Humane — DMHA At DMHA, our mission as architects and designers is to bring our clients’ unique visions to life. By aligning client goals with our firm’s expertise, we pursue excellence in design as one collaborative team. For the past four years, we’ve had the privilege of partnering with Santa Barbara Huma...

A closer look at our Marina Residence interiors…

Photography by Erin Feinblatt.

Marina Residence is a modern home that showcases Pacific Ocean and Channel Island views from virtually every room. With sliding walls and large windows, the home blurs the lines between indoor and outdoor living. The exposed building structure and large overhanging roof draw one in upon arrival, leading to strategically placed and thoughtfully designed Living Pavilions. Marina Residence incorporates a number of sustainable features. We are incredibly proud of this project, and thankful for everyone involved.

Photography:
Landscape Designer: Rob Maday
General Contractor: Campbell Construction
Structural Engineer: Taylor & Syfan Engineering
Architecture: DMHA
Interior Design: DMHA