Condominium 1 was designed by Charles W. Moore, Donlyn Lyndon, William Turnbull, Jr. and Richard Whitaker in 1963 and 1964.

The site was a grassy, windswept field bordering a rocky shore where the waves break high against the cliff, a place at once barren, rugged and grand. Cypresses, planted when the condominium was new, have matured to provide screening from California Highway 1. With the exception of the mature cypresses, the property looks today as it did historically and retains its original integrity.

The condominium is a heavy timber-frame building wrapped in redwood siding to reflect the regional context. Its large, complex form rises from the cliff edge along the slope of an upward-rising hill, terminating in a pair of towers at the crest that mark this place in the landscape.

Ten condominium units, grouped around a courtyard, were designed to form a single building, bold enough in its overall shape to command the coastline. Shed roofs create a variety of interior and exterior dimensions to the identically-sized units. The planes intersect each other to produce projecting tower units and an episodic complexity.

In 1991 the condominium was awarded the AIA Twenty-Five-Year Award. The award stated:

"Timeless and enduring, the condominium at Sea Ranch seems to grow naturally from the rocky, windswept coast of northern California, a triumph of innovation and tradition. Echoing the gentle pitch of the surrounding cliffs and the simple geometry of the local farm buildings, the angled roofs tame the wind, at once binding the building to the rugged landscape and the history of the region."

Source: Adapted from the NRHP Nomination submitted in 2005.