SCHOOL ZONES:
Pt Chevalier School, Pasadena
Intermediate, Western Springs College.
CONTACT:
Lynn Lacy-Hauck, Ray White, ph 021 190 0611 or 376 2186.
When Alex and Bridget Parfitt bought a section that sloped down to Meola Creek in the suburb of Pt Chevalier, they knew it would take a special home to make the most of the unusual site.
"We loved the fact that it backs on to the creek and it almost feels like you are in the bush," says Alex. "We wanted a house that made the most of the outlook and we also wanted to put as big a house as we could on the section without it taking over the whole thing. It was quite a challenge."
Architect Jonathan Smith, of Auckland firm Matter, rose to that challenge with a design that fitted cleverly into the gently sloping land, and is sunny and light with great indoor/outdoor flow.
"It was quite a restricted site in terms of space, so that was the inspiration behind the design of the house," says Jonathan. "The idea was to be able to enjoy looking out over the creek and trees at the bottom of the property, while being as private as possible from the neighbours."
The house is positioned so that it tucks into the slope and there is still plenty of north-facing space, including an area of flat lawn by the creek.
"It amazed me how much outdoor space we do have," says Alex. "It is very well thought-out."
The house is on two-and-a-half storeys. The double garage, entrance and family bathroom are on the ground floor. A short hall leads to stairs up to the three bedrooms, which include a master bedroom with a walk-through wardrobe and a "wet room" en suite.
Meanwhile, another set of stairs goes down to the main living areas. As well as an open-plan living, dining and kitchen, there's another space that makes a great TV room or study.
The whole north side of the house is glass, which frames the uninterrupted view of the trees lining the creek, and lets the sun pour in and heat up the polished concrete floors, which then release that heat in cooler evenings.
The sandwich panel concrete walls have insulation in the middle and are extra thick, at 300mm, which also helps to keep the house very warm.
"It never gets very cold," says Alex. "I really miss that."
After living in the house for a year, he and Bridget moved to Christchurch last year.
The house has been rented since then to Ann Sampson, who says it is one of the warmest and most comfortable homes she's ever lived in.
"And I've lived in quite a few. People are always impressed when they come here."
Visitors are also wowed by the unique, semi-industrial feel the house has thanks to the building materials used.
When Jonathan asked Alex how he'd feel about it being constructed mostly from steel and concrete, Alex couldn't have been happier.
"I work in construction. I'm very comfortable with steel and concrete," he says. "I said that was fine by me."
However, it took his wife, Bridget, a little longer to get to grips with how the home would look.
"She couldn't quite picture it just from the plans, but once building got under way, she loved it."
Jonathan has used exposed steel framing and pre-cast concrete walls throughout much of the house. Downstairs, the ceilings are of plywood, apart from in the main living area, where the steel flooring for the upstairs level, which would usually be covered, was left exposed.
Image 1 of 7: 87B Premier Ave, Point Chevalier. Photo / Getty Images
Jonathan says he did his best to make "every single square metre usable. There is very little wasted space."
His efforts won him a Concrete Sustainability Award for excellence in residential architecture as well as the heartfelt thanks of his clients. "Jonathan did a great job, and we were very happy living here," says Alex. "It's a great spot, so close to Pt Chev beach and the zoo and Western Springs. It's really good for families."
He'll be raising his three children in Christchurch for the foreseeable future, so is reluctantly letting the house go.
