Finalist for the 2015 CHBA SAM Awards and the 2016 CHBA National Awards for Housing Excellence. A relatively compact modern home designed to fit into an established urban community near downtown Calgary. This home was designed for indoor/outdoor living, and for flexible use of interior spaces. Although the lines of the house are unabashedly modern, the extensive use of natural materials and huge windows creates a bright, family-friendly home. Of critical importance to our clients was the facilitation of interaction with neighbours and the creation of a family-oriented music performance space at the heart of the home.
What was the brief?
Design a family friendly home that’s open the the back yard for kids play and open to the front porch for interaction with neighbours and passers-by. Make the most of a very tight budget and a small building footprint. Incorporate lots of room for outdoor gear storage!
What were the key challenges?
This home is built on a tight, urban site so every space planning decision was made with efficiency and adaptability in mind. Wild hops grew on the property and they’re regularly harvested by a local brewery so we took great care to preserve them throughout the build!
What were the solutions?
A compact modern home designed to fit into an established urban community, this home is perfectly-suited to the active family indoor/outdoor lifestyle its owners enjoy. Although the lines of the house are unabashedly modern, the extensive use of natural materials and huge windows creates an inviting, family-friendly home bathed in natural light.
The focal point of the home is a dramatic, open-concept Great Room/Kitchen/Eating Area that opens up at both ends to a covered front porch and a sunny back yard terrace. The kitchen area is defined by a custom-built stained wood panel overhead. A full-width custom built entertainment unit backstops the Great Room, incorporating backlit guitar display and storage units with concealed TV and lots of bookcases. It’s a bit of a jigsaw puzzle and can be reconfigured many way depending upon the family’s requirements.
The second floor hallway is located above the kitchen, and incorporates a structural glass floor that washes sunlight from skylights above down to the kitchen island. A unique front-to-back mudroom area connects front foyer with back door. It’s used for storing the owners’ outdoor gear in a durable environment.
Energy efficient design & construction details include high efficiency HVAC system, large eaves, triple-glazed opening windows to permit natural cross ventilation, and a tight building envelope with air barrier. Flexible spaces serve more than one purpose and adapt as family needs evolve.
Structural glass plates built into the second floor hallway send daylight down to the kitchen below without sacrificing valuable floor space. A full-depth mudroom allows kids to come and go as they please while isolating any outdoor mess from the rest of the home.
Large barn doors are used extensively to make the home more flexible by allowing a single space to be configured many ways. Primary living spaces designed for indoor/outdoor living so that the effective usable area is increased beyond the building footprint.
In addition, to maximize efficiency, the master ensuite bath and the adjacent kids bath share a common soaker tub/spa room that can be locked from either side.
