The clients brief was to create a modern open plan home for them taking as much advantage as possible of the large steep river frontage block of land.
This was made exceedingly difficult by the fact that the existing house on the site had a heritage overlay and was built on the flood plain. Because of the heritage overlay it would be very difficult to demolish and if we did, due to the flood plain we had very limited area on the site on which to build, it was therefore decided was to renovate the existing Victorian weatherboard house and out buildings on the site. The existing house had had very little work done on it 150 years and was never more than a simple workers cottage to start with and only 10m x 10m.
The lower level was opened up into one space incorporating living/dining & kitchen/laundry and was enlarged by digging into the hill behind, this allowed direct access to the land and the river bank. A parking deck and bridge were added at the top level which made this the main access point. Also included on this level were 2 bedrooms a study and two bathrooms.
A large open staircase was designed to connect the 2 levels; with glass balustrades this connects the two floors visually. The material and colour palate was kept minimal; timber was laid on all floors and the stair treads and used on feature doors etc. to keep all spaces flowing together.
