“…the house has been completely transformed; it’s much more comfortable, and there is a very efficient use of space. You have a strong technical knowledge and the way you specified certain products significantly improved the overall quality.”

This project was a full renovation of an existing old house in Wadestown.

The original house was a mixture of styles starting life as an Edwardian bungalow, that sat on a steep hill escarpment looking over Wellington harbour. The major changes to the house over time appear to have happened sometime in the 1950s, and included filling in the verandah to create a modern skin, with large glazing to the eastern harbour views. The interior was renovated with narrow government profiles being the flavour of the day, but tired now, and out of step with the very tall ceiling heights and other beautiful character features the house had left – all other character had been stripped.

The client sought to continue to make the most of views by retaining the large glazing, while making improvements to suit their growing family and revitalise the original charm of the bungalow within. They also wanted to improve the thermal comfort, including new insulation, and double glazing retrofit of the existing timber windows. The house would always be a mixture of styles, but Wright & Gray Architects sought to consolidate as much as we could to provide some clarity in the design and make the most of the good bones the house had to create the character the client wanted within. A full gut and reline of the house were carried out and included, a new kitchen, laundry and family bathroom. A reconfiguration of the main floor meant better use and clarity of space for a functioning open plan kitchen/dining family living space filled with harbour views wherever you look. Parents can keep an eye on things as you can see everywhere from the kitchen. Sun fills these connected open plan rooms nicely. A new outdoor deck complements this family space, with access via full width opening doors it becomes the heart of the family area for kids to seamlessly run in and out and extends the feeling of space. The open connection is grand and very functional being a place for BBQs, entertaining and play. It is deliberately located next to the kitchen and dining space. The deck, can also be a place just to sit from a hanging chair with a book or to admire the views in the sun.

The client also required a new ducted heat pump heating and cooling system to be installed on the second and third floor. This was carefully considered and coordinated with an installer to find the best pathways for ducting. We only had one very small unnoticeable bulkhead otherwise the system is completely hidden.

There was a large loft roof space that the clients identified early on as somewhere that could be extended and a master bedroom plus ensuite and a place to retire or study fitted snugly on the newly made third floor. Careful checks were made to ensure all the new stairways fitted without any issues of head room.

The existing steep driveway ended with a narrow platform at the top. Much time was spent working and reworking car turning circles within our CAD software to engineer an efficient methodology to improve on providing a second car into the basement garage. This was a success and we were also able to connect and internal access stairway to the main floor of the house. During the time of build the client purchased an electric car and our specification upgrade to allow for car charging cable upgrades from the main electrical board came in good use! This purchase also complemented the new solar panels installed.

To achieve all of the multilevel changes required including cantilevered decks, new stairways and to make good to uncontrolled prior renovations (that removed of load bearing structure), a steel superstructure was inserted under the skin. Due to the skill and care of the structural engineer, the main contract and Wright & Gray Architects’ coordination, this gymnasium of structure is barely noticeable in the final product.

With the help of Wright & Gray Architects this house has been fully upgraded to a fresh modern standard including seismic resistance to the current code, to last many more generations. The clients are very happy with their reimagined house on the hill.

Collaborators:

Structural engineer: Morrison Design

Building contractor: David Hale Building Ltd