2 500 SF
New Construction
Featured in: Lighthouse Market Insights Report – Jan. 2009
The design of this contemporary West-Coast house was inspired by the rustic site and the client’s desire for a true inside-outside house. The building’s rectilinear planning and wrapping grey metal roof mimic the shape and colour of the 12’ stratified rock outcropping on which the house stands. Two unique elements, the dynamically roofed entrance and feature fireplace wall, are clad in weathering steel. As the building ages the rich rusty-orange tones of the weathering steel become deeper, matching the colour of the iron flecks on the cliff face. The extensive use of smooth, flush wood creates a visual rapport between the house and the surrounding arbutus trees.
The axial circulation and floor to ceiling glazing draw you through the house. A simple material palette inspired by the site flows from outside to inside, to outside again.
Several ‘green’ elements were incorporated in the design including hydronic radiant floor heating, carefully located operable windows for passive ventilation and cooling, high performance glazing, sun shading in the summer months complimented with direct solar access in the winter, the disassembly and reuse of the existing cottage on site, a metal roof for rain water capture, and salvaged millwork and furnishings.
