North Bondi House / In Progress
Situated in a quiet leafy backstreet of North Bondi, this extensive alterations and additions project was designed to retain the existing ground and level 1 form of the existing freestanding house.
Designed for a growing family, the new layout needed to accommodate multiple living spaces, 4 bedrooms including a generous master , a dedicated home office, gym and wine store.
The existing dwelling suffered from a lack of useable outdoor space due an unsympathetic rear addition so the removal of this was key to opening up the the house to the garden and daylight.
The site slopes from the street to the rear by a storey so the living spaces at Level 1 benefit from an elevated west facing terrace over the garage and the rear garden catches Northern sun for most of the day.
From early in the design process, the second floor addition to the house was conceived as a Cross Laminated Timber structure that could be dropped into place. A simple pitched roof and gable form extrude the existing footprint.
This upper level is stepped back from the front facade to create a generous balcony to the master bedroom with large planter beds shielding views from the neighbouring property. Steel plate hoods provide shade to these West facing windows. To the rear, the bedroom windows are setback within deep reveals and behind planter beds that soften the form. Blackbutt sliding screens provide privacy and shade to these bedrooms.
The existing entry sequence is retained as a private courtyard garden leads to the front door. A straight flight of stairs leads to the living zones on Level 1 where a new double height space links levels 1 & 2. A new staircase and vertical south facing window, combined with a large skylight over the L2 hallway with a glass floor directly below, allows light to spill into the centre of the house and kitchen on Level 1
Architecturally, the new level 2 form is treated as a timber clad box to differentiate it from the masonry base and a soft and natural materials including white painted ribbed timber cladding, rough textured render, painted steel detailing, blackbutt window frames and travertine crazy paving.
Internally, oak and terrazzo flooring, blackbutt and natural stone continue the beach house aesthetic.
Builder: AJP Constructions
Structural Eng: Cantilever
Town Planner: GSA Planning
Landscape: TWLA
Hydraulic Engineer: ITM Design
