The project is the client’s dream home for her lifestyle enjoyment. The house is a Victorian heritage terrace with a lean-to structure at the rear. The renovation kept the heritage front façade whilst rebuilding the rest of the house to suit her lifestyle.
The new addition is recessed more than 3m from the front heritage façade. The portion that is visible from Coleman Street appears as a frame of the interior space. This introduces new building elements without interrupting the façade rhythm of the street. The reinstated elements of the original house such as the front porch retain the identity of the heritage place.
From the rear laneway, the parapet and verandah awning profile emphasise the continuation of the original pitch roof form, carrying the physical essence of the original house through to the new building fabric. This can be seen through both the internal cathedral ceiling and the verandah awning. The circular window awning adds an irregularity to the contemporary interpretation of the heritage place, creating a point of interest, but most importantly providing a porthole out to the world for the ‘Queen of the Castle’ – the cat Dot.
