The site consists of a sloped approach way connected to the frontal road, a narrow strip of flat land stretched in the east-west direction and set at 1.2m below the frontal road, and a forest on a steep slope like a cliff on the south side. This area on hilly land was developed by a railroad company in the 1970s and is connected to the town by the only bridge that crosses the Muko River. The young family chose this place to build their new home.
A ramp used as both an approach and parking area, which seems to branch off from the slope up the hill, is placed on the north side of the site, and a terrace is placed close to the edge of the site as if projecting into the forest. The ramp and the garden underneath on the north side represent a connection to work, school and town, while the terrace and the forest on the south side represent playful weekend activities of the family and the dog, and the building is placed in between.
The first floor of the building is a one-legged reinforced concrete post-and-beam structure and the second floor is a wood structure with a deformed gable roof. The ramp is also supported by a one-legged structure, which creates rhythms in the garden underneath. The second floor is made of 39-mm thick solid cedar flooring which doubles as the ceiling of the first floor space.
The entire sequence–– from the ramp, through the living room on the second floor towards the forest, and to the entrance; from doma (entrance hall with a dirt floor,) down the stairs to engawa (a type of veranda in traditional Japanese houses) on the first floor; from engawa to the garden under the ramp––weaves through the town, house, and forest.
敷地は、前面道路（坂）と最大1.2mの段差をもつ東西に細長い平場と、南側に大きく傾斜したほとんど崖のような森からなっている。一帯は70年代に鉄道会社が開発した丘陵地にある造成地で、武庫川を渡る唯一の橋で町とつながっている。若い家族はここを新たな生活の場として選んだ。
丘を登る坂道から分岐したようなアプローチ兼駐車場のスロープを敷地北側に置き、テラスを森に跳ね出すようにぎりぎりに置く。北側のスロープとその下の庭が仕事や学校や町への接続、南側のテラスと森が週末の家族と犬の遊びや生活、をそれぞれ象徴するという位置づけで、その間に建物がある、という配置になっている。
建物は1階が一本足RCラーメン構造で、2階は変形切妻の木造になっている。スロープも一本足で、スロープ下の庭に一定のリズムを作る。2階の床は39mm厚の杉無垢のフローリングでこれがそのまま1階の天井仕上げとなっている。スロープから2階のリビングを森側に迂回して玄関へ、玄関土間から階段を降りると1階の縁側へ、縁側から今度はスロープ下の庭へ、庭から再び坂へ、というシークエンスが、町と家と森を絡め取っていく。