Northcote House

Shortlisted 2022 Houses Awards Alteration & Addition over 200sqm

Shortlisted 2022 ArchiTeam Awards Alteration & Addition $500 - $1M

Runner Up 2022 TIDA Awards Australia Renovation

This double storey addition to a detached Victorian house in Northcote creates a bridge between the existing building and its deep rear garden. Unlike most contemporary additions, this client decided to go down rather than up. To maintain the beautiful open feel of the rear garden and not overwhelm the scale of the existing building, this double storey addition is created with living spaces at ground floor and bedroom spaces below.

A linear glazed roof separates the heritage and contemporary parts of this house, bringing natural light into the heart of the living room and basement below. Existing external red brick walls are retained to form a backdrop to the new living space and are complemented by a natural material palette of polished concrete, stone and timber. A new enclosed side entry provides access directly into the family living area and transforms the original single fronted terrace into a multi-zoned family home with strong connections between two separate bedroom areas and central communal living spaces. The angular roof form of the new living space is designed to simultaneously compliment and contrast the pure hipped form of the heritage building.