The Row at Red Hill: An Award-Winning Design Protected with Integrated Fire Doors + Smoke Curtains

Some projects are big. Some projects are beautiful.

And then there are projects like The Row at Red Hill, massive, design-forward, amenity-loaded, and already earning major industry recognition.

Located at the Santa Ana/Tustin gateway, this mixed-use destination spans 14.7 acres and is home to 1,100 apartments and 80,000 SF of retail, a true neighborhood-scale development built around plazas, paseos, and daily walkability. It’s also been reported as one of Greystar’s largest projects to date.

A design you feel the moment you arrive.

AO’s concept, “Connecting Santa Ana’s industrial heritage with 21st century urban tech”, comes through in the bold, modern industrial character and highly curated “district” energy. Layered facades, brick + steel expression, and a pedestrian-first plan make it feel like an actual place, not just a collection of buildings.

Amenities that are legitimately next-level

The Row doesn’t just check the amenity box; it makes amenities part of the identity:

Multiple rooftop amenity decks with saltwater pools and spas, plus cabanas, fire pits, and indoor-outdoor community rooms

Every pool has its own unique layout and rivals luxury hotels.

A 15,000 SF fitness + wellness center designed for real lifestyle programming

A walkable master plan anchored by Market Hall, a central plaza, and grand paseos that link retail, neighborhoods, and gathering areas.

The awards shelf is already stacked.

• The Row at Red Hill has been recognized across multiple top programs, including:
• MFE Awards – Grand Award, Mid-Rise Category
• Gold Nugget Awards – Grand Award, Multifamily Community of the Year
• Gold Nugget Awards – Grand Award, Best Multifamily Housing Community – 60-100 du/ac
• AIA OC Design Awards – Honor Award, Multifamily/Mixed-Use
• NAHB Best in American Living – On-the-Boards Multifamily Project
• NAHB Best in American Living – On-the-Boards Community
• Gold Nugget Grand Award- Best On-the-Boards Mixed-Use Project
• Gold Nugget Merit Award- Best On-the-Boards Multifamily Community
• www.aoarchitects.com/news/

Wrap Apartments = Complex Circulation = Openings That Must Perform.

All of the buildings at The Row are wrap apartments, meaning the residences wrap around structured parking. AO notes four wrapped residential buildings anchored by multi-story parking structures (Type IB), totaling 2,455 parking stalls.

That wrap condition creates an incredible resident experience-but it also makes elevator and corridor circulation “mission critical.” The doors and smoke containment strategy have to support:

• high daily traffic
• clear, welcoming design
• code-compliant fire and smoke protection
• durable, low-maintenance operation for the long haul

That’s exactly where Door Systems solutions came in.

Syntégra™ at The Row: Integrated Hold-Open Fire + Smoke Doors Where People Live

Door Systems provided Hold Open Fire Doors by Syntegra in the corridors, lobbies, and horizontal exits, including openings requiring access control.

Syntégra also played a key role in the elevators inside the apartment buildings

Cross-corridors: XT Panic Bars for egress + fire & smoke compartmentation

The cross-corridor openings at The Row use XT Panic Bars (XT Series flush exit device openings), delivering the “no compromise” mix of egress safety + design-forward aesthetics.

XT Series is a champion in areas of separation—cross-corridor applications — while maintaining a near-flush profile that helps preserve clean lines and a clear opening width.

Why integrated door systems matter on projects like this

Syntégra is designed as a complete integrated door, frame, and hardware package, factory-assembled so the components are engineered to work together. That approach is built to reduce moving parts, improve reliability, and simplify installation/coordination on complex, high-cycle openings.

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Parking structure elevators: DSI‑600 protecting garage elevators with hold-open smoke curtains

While Syntégra protected the apartment building elevators with hold-open smoke doors, the garage elevators were protected with Door Systems’ DSI‑600 Elevator Smoke Containment System® smoke curtain solution, designed to remain visually quiet until needed.

The DSI‑600 is designed as a cost-effective, architecturally pleasing elevator smoke protection solution, and it’s also fire-rated. Door Systems notes UL 10D fire protection curtain labeling (multiple ratings), UL 1784 smoke migration “S” label, ICC‑ESR #4761 (AC77), gravity fail-safe closing (no power required), compact headbox requirements, and a concealed “virtually invisible” retracted appearance.

On a wrap project, where parking structure circulation is part of everyday life, this is a simple way to protect elevator openings without compromising the architecture.

Project Team Shout-Out

A huge congratulations to the team behind this standout development:

• Developer: Greystar
• Designed by: AO (Design Architect / Architect of Record / Planner)
• Interiors: Parisi Portfolio
• Civil: Fuscoe Engineering, Inc.
• Landscape: MJS Landscape Architecture

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Closing

The Row at Red Hill is the kind of project that proves what’s possible when design ambition and life-safety performance are treated as equally important.

From award-winning place making to integrated hold-open fire + smoke protection, we’re proud that Door Systems solutions are part of what keeps this community moving safely, beautifully, and reliably.