A rooftop sky deck changes character over the course of a day. Morning brings quiet laps and coffee in the sun. Afternoon fills the pool deck with residents and their guests. By evening, the pool empties out, the pool lighting gives way to the glow of the fire pits, and the rooftop sky deck becomes a different kind of space: a place to cook dinner, sit outside with neighbors, and watch the city or the mountains from the top of the building as the smell of something on the grill starts to drift across the deck.
Outdoor Kitchens Built for Real Cooking
Most Optima communities have an outdoor kitchen on the rooftop sky deck. Optima Lakeview pairs its BBQs and outdoor kitchens with a rooftop theater, so dinner and a movie can happen back to back without leaving the sky deck. Optima Verdana sets its outdoor dining area a few steps from the fire pit lounges, on the same rooftop sky deck as the heated, glass-enclosed lap pool. In Scottsdale, Optima Sonoran Village runs a full outdoor kitchen with a BBQ on Tower 15’s rooftop sky deck, while Optima Kierland Apartments gives each of its three towers, 7140, 7160, and 7190, its own open-air kitchen and dining space, exclusive to that tower’s residents. At Optima McDowell Mountain, the rooftop sky deck adds grilling stations and an outdoor bar with counter seating, for residents who want to eat where the food is cooked and watch the mountains change color as the sun sets. Optima Signature‘s 7th and 8th floor terrace includes grills alongside its fire pits and lounge seating, open to the wider building, while Club 52, a private amenity level on the 52nd floor for residents in the building’s Apex collection, adds its own alfresco kitchen and wine lockers.
Fire Pits That Keep the Deck Open After Dark
Fire pits are what let a rooftop sky deck stay in use once the sun sets and the temperature drops, and every community keeps them close to the lounge seating rather than off to the side. At Optima Signature, fire pits are spread throughout the 7th and 8th floor terrace, each with its own seating, so there is rarely just one gathering point. Optima Lakeview positions its fire pits right off the pool and spa, close enough that a swim can turn into a seat by the fire in a few steps. Optima Verdana groups its fire pit lounges with the garden lounge and outdoor dining area, wrapped in the same vertical landscaping that runs down the face of the building. Optima Sonoran Village spreads fire pits across both outdoor pool areas and Tower 15’s rooftop sky deck, while Optima Kierland places intimate fire pits with plush seating at each tower’s rooftop sky deck, framed by views that stretch out over the city as the light fades. At Optima McDowell Mountain, fire pits and lounge areas sit near the outdoor entertainment area on the rooftop sky deck, so a game on the outdoor TVs, a conversation, and the fire all happen in the same area.
What the Evening Looks Like
The shift from day to evening on the rooftop sky deck is really a shift in who is using it and for what. The lap swimmers and sunbathers give way to residents cooking dinner, neighbors catching up over a drink, or a small group settled around a fire pit with the skyline, the lake, or the mountains fading into silhouette behind them. It does not take leaving the building or planning ahead. The kitchen, the fire pit, and the view are already there, waiting for whichever way the evening goes.
Explore our communities to see what evenings on the sky deck look like in person.
