A house set in the treetops overlooking Ngunguru estuary has won awards in the home and sustainability categories from the New Zealand Institute of Architects Incorporated Local Awards.
The house, built by RHJ Builders and designed by Wellington-based architects Tennent and Brown Architects, features weatherboards exterior and interior. The awards came as a surprise for Richard Hilton-Jones of RHJ Builders as he completed the home in 2009.
"The architects obviously left it for a while, and when we found out we were getting the awards we all went down to Auckland for it," he said.
He was pleased with the awards that recognised the hard work from the team involved. The materials used to build the family home were sustainably sourced, and local product was used.
The NZIA said about the home: "The architectural concept of a house as bush camp has been wonderfully played out in form and materiality in this captivating family home sited on a tree covered hill top with beautiful narrow coastal views.