A reconsidered approach to seniors living creating a unique place and sense of community, with a cluster of homes arranged around significant landscape
The proposal is for a 2-storey seniors living development with associated amenities comprising of 18 high-quality units and car parking for 27 cars. The approach is to create a considered and elegant architectural expression that positively contributes to the locality through both visual amenity of its architecture and site response.
The context of Collins Road presents an opportunity to reconsider the approach of seniors living developments within a suburban environment. The challenge of the seniors living typology is the typically high quantity of paving areas and compact private gardens. Driveways, and hence vehicles, are dominant, which seems the antithesis of the landscape character of St Ives, where gardens blend into their neighbors, and informality rather than formality is predominant.
Linking each of the private dwellings into a community of plants
The site is host to a very high quality level of existing landscape amenity. The proposal seeks to build around these existing trees and create a private, almost hidden oasis of green. This private garden stretches throughout the proposal, linking each of the private dwellings into a community of plants. To the public realm, the development appears as a collection of small houses, dominated by landscape and sitting amongst the trees. A strategy of hedging and planting defines the street boundary, with any fencing and retaining walls concealed from public view. The front yard can, therefore, expand the scale of the public realm.
Creating a community means using all opportunities on the site to foster social connection. The communal garden at its heart will be enhanced with retention of some existing sapling trees and having a communal area with a north aspect.
The context of Collins Road presents an opportunity to reconsider the approach of seniors’ living developments within a suburban environment. The challenge of the seniors’ living typology is the typically high quantity of paving areas and compact private gardens. Driveways, and hence vehicles, are dominant through. This seems the antithesis of the landscape character of St Ives, where gardens blend into their neighbors, and informality rather than formality is predominant.
The site is host to a very high quality level of existing landscape amenity. The proposal seeks to build around these existing trees and create a private, almost hidden oasis of green. This private garden stretches throughout the proposal, linking each of the private dwellings into a community of plants.
To the public realm, the development appears as a collection of small houses, dominated by landscape and sitting amongst the trees. A strategy of hedging and planting define the street boundary, with any fencing and retaining walls concealed from public view. The front yard can, therefore, expand the scale of the public realm.
Creating a community means using all opportunities on the site to foster social connection. The communal garden at its heart will be enhanced with retention of some existing sapling trees and having a communal area with a north aspect.