user: Smith & Others twofer: Pacific on one side, Torrey Pines on other

With banks of windows up to 20 feet high taking in the ocean to the west, the new Del Mar home of David and Linda Weinman would seem hard-pressed to deliver a more glorious view -- unless you were to look toward the south, where more glass frames vistas of Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.

"Our idea was to connect the park at the back with the ocean in front,” said Ted Smith, who, with Kathy McCormick, makes up the architectural firm Smith & Others.

Their task was not easy, given that the sloping site has large houses on both sides. The architects not only positioned the new house close to the property's rear boundary, thus opening up the view to Torrey Pines, but also elevated it, expanding the views northward.

The result feels like something of a giant Modernist balcony from which the Weinmans can take full advantage of their perch high above the Pacific.

PHOTO GALLERY: The Weinman house

The three-bedroom, 3,500-square-foot home looks deceptively simple: two concrete-and-glass boxes. Inside, however, the ingenuity of McCormick is much in evidence. She designed every room with a different ceiling height, ranging from 20 feet in the living room to a mere 7 feet where the sloping ceiling of the master bedroom hits the east wall.

This bedroom, above right, a mezzanine only 12 feet wide, is walled by glass for an exaggerated sense of living, and sleeping, above the ocean.

The main living room, with walls of glass on opposing sides, opens to a small patio and gravel courtyard. Beyond is the reserve, home of the stately, wind-swept tree that is the nation's rarest native pine. With the teak veneer ceiling high above and sunlight streaming in, the room makes it easy to feel as though you're sitting in the middle of coastal chaparral.

Given the connections to nature, it is somewhat surprising that the house has an almost industrial feel.

“We always loved the atmosphere of the spare, contemporary art gallery,” David Weinman said.

He and his wife gave McCormick and Smith specific instructions on the material palette: steel, glass, concrete, raw wood, earth tones. If stucco had to be used, it had to be white. It was an order that was easy to meet, and one that paid off. Even though each room feels different, the house holds together as a whole.

Another consideration: art. The Weinmans owned a substantial collection, Smith said, "so the spaces are designed to foster a connection to it."

The house is a far cry from the 1970s-flavored original residence on the site, purchased by the couple more than a decade ago.

"It had few views because many of the windows were shaped like the states of Nevada and Idaho," said David Weinman, a longtime resident of Del Mar.

During 1 1/2 years of construction, the couple lived in a 280-square-foot guest room, now demolished.

"It made us appreciate what we have now even more," David Weinman said. With the Nevada and Idaho windows gone, the views that remain are pure California.

Photo gallery: More on the Weinman house

Homes of the Times: Past profiles in pictures

Landmark Houses: Wright, Lautner, Eames and more

Photo credit: Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times

summary: The new Del Mar home of David and Linda Weinman offers views of the Pacific and Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.

A Corner of Durham, N.C., Comes to Life

Like firecrackers exploding around downtown Durham, clusters of small businesses are popping up and enlivening one desolate block after another. Over the past months, the loudest bangs have been heard in the Central Park District near the corner of Rigsbee Avenue and West Geer Street. The intersection was first settled by Fullsteam Brewery, whose cavernous tavern lured locals (and lots of food trucks) to this previously neglected part of town. Now there’s live music, top-notch barbecue, fair trade coffee, and even valet parking on a block that five years ago was deserted after dark.

The first outpost of this legendary Raleigh restaurant, one of the biggest names in North Carolina barbecue, opened in November 2013. The polished spot excels at both styles of North Carolina barbecue: chopped or pulled pork from pit-roasted whole hogs seasoned with a vinegar-based sauce (eastern style) and smoky pork shoulders with a tomato-and-vinegar dip (Lexington style).

321 West Geer Street; 919-282-3748; thepit-durham.com

This pioneering brewery, which opened in August 2010, produces beers from regional ingredients like North Carolina persimmons, sweet potatoes and summer basil. The brewery’s tavern, with its long picnic benches, Ping-Pong table, dart boards, jukebox and piles of board games, has become the de facto community hangout where even children and dogs are welcome.

726 Rigsbee Avenue; 919-682-2337; fullsteam.ag

This coffee shop, which opened in early 2013, is emblematic of the district’s Do-It-Yourself ethos. What began as a popular mobile coffee vendor called bikeCOFFEE is now a cozy, crowd-funded cafe with colorful tile floors by a local artist and a menu featuring ground-to-order coffees and single-origin sipping chocolates.

420 West Geer Street; cocoacinnamon.com

An old Gulf gas station was converted into this casual restaurant and bar in 2011. The taps predominantly pour North Carolina beers, like Fullsteam’s Southern Lager and the Sweet Josie Brown Ale from Raleigh’s Lonerider brewery. In warmer months, the backyard patio transforms into a popular beer garden serving pub grub like burgers made with local pasture-raised beef.

644 Foster Street; 919-688-2900; geerstreetgarden.com

Since opening in a former car dealership in 2010, this music hall has hosted concerts, film screenings and eclectic events, like a yacht-themed dance party. Last November, its offerings expanded with the opening of an adjacent kitchen called Parts & Labor that serves pints of mussels and fried oyster salads.

723 Rigsbee Avenue; 919-901-0875; motorcomusic.com

A version of this article appears in print on August 17, 2014, on page TR11 of the New York edition with the headline: Pulled Pork and Valet Parking: Another Corner of Downtown Comes to Life. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe

summary: In the once-neglected Central Park District, you can find top-notch barbecue, live music, fair trade coffee and more.

Airbus Confirms It Will Upgrade A330

FARNBOROUGH, England — Airbus Group on Monday revealed a plan to build an upgraded, more fuel-efficient version of its best-selling wide-body jet, the A330, in a bid to maintain competitiveness against its American rival, Boeing Co., in the market for long-range passenger planes.

Expected to enter service in 2017, the A330neo — for “new engine option” — will be fitted with larger engines from Rolls-Royce and fly longer distances. Airbus said the new engines, a larger wingspan, and other aerodynamic improvements, as well as 10 extra seats, will achieve total fuel cost savings of 14 percent per flight. The existing version of the A330 seats 250 to 300.

The decision to revamp the A330 follows a similar move by Airbus four years ago to upgrade its short-range workhorse, the A320, followed a year later by Boeing with an upgrade of its competing 737.

Airbus has sold nearly 1,100 A330s over the past 20 years and has orders for around 250 more. Analysts estimate the A330 contributes 40 percent of commercial aircraft profits for Airbus. But with a new generation of lightweight wide-bodies such as the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, it is starting to show its age.

summary:

assistant: FARNBOROUGH, England — Airbus Group on Monday revealed a plan to build an upgraded, more fuel-efficient version of its best-selling wide-body jet, the A330, in a bid to maintain competitiveness against its American rival, Boeing, in the market for long-range passenger planes.