Alma Road, Cape Town. RSA.
A detached brick house, overlooked by the majestic Table Mountain to the West. The medium sized, rectangular block is located in Rosebank, the Southern suburbs of Cape Town South Africa. The original 1930s house had undergone fairly brutal renovations during the late seventies, including the placement of a small ensuite in to the original entry of the house.
The proposal aims to restore the house planning to its original intent, with a portico covered central main entry. The front south facing yard is proposed to be a low maintenance, 'viewed' garden with feature semi mature trees surrounded by stone pebbles. New hedge planting to the front boundary of the property, soften the appearance of the new brick wall which is setback from the front boundary. Subtle wall insertions into the existing plan create a luxurious ensuite bathroom to the master bedroom, while the majority of wall openings are retained to reduce costs.
Efficient grouping and planning of the new kitchen, bathroom and laundry room allow large open living rooms, and are located with the existing plumbing services in mind. A new wide opening off the dining room takes advantage of the Northern light and blurs the threshold between the outdoor entertaining deck and the internal dining room. A hardwood pergola will eventually be covered in vines, which will aid privacy from the overlooking neighbouring house, as well as shield the dining room from the summer sun. Skylights are proposed over the dining room area to allow natural daylight to penetrate further into the living spaces.
Floor to ceiling glazing to the NW corner of the living room frame the sensational views to Table Mountain, and help to increase the perceived height of the low living room ceiling.
A plunge pool with surrounding timber deck to the NW of the house, provide a private oasis to the clients, screens block the street and existing carport while existing dense shrubs block the neighbours house. The timber deck will provide contrast to the existing white washed brick wall and chimney of the house and will float above the natural ground level to be flush with the internal floor level, saving costs on pool excavation.
An above ground rainwater tank is proposed to supply harvested water for toilet flushing and garden irrigation.
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