Award winner for best small housing development
Hitting the roof
Architects and homebuilders put as much thought – often more – into a small development as a large one,
which is why we think it is important to recognise the quality of small housing developments, which might otherwise get overlooked when compared to the glitz and glamour of some of today’s large housing developments. Small developments often demonstrate how difficult sites can be tackled and how housing design can be taken forward in ways that may eventually appear in large developments by volume homebuilders.
The Pantile is a good example of this. It is a development of 14 apartments in three buildings on an extremely tight and awkward site that was formerly a roofers’ yard in Bedminster, just south of the city centre of Bristol. Located in a conservation area, the site is bounded by Grade II listed buildings, and every homebuilder large or small knows what this can mean in terms of planning negotiations and objections by local residents.
It is therefore a considerable achievement on the part of Firmac Developments and its architects 3W – a name so small one can almost miss it – that instead of a bland pastiche, they have produced a development that is the first contemporary design to be built in this part of Bristol, which is currently undergoing considerable regeneration.
The design has reinstated the street frontage and created a courtyard for its residents that includes off-street parking, as well as a cycle shed and bin store that were carefully designed to be part of the landscaping rather than additions to spoil it.
Natural materials such as cedar, local bricks and paving were chosen to help the building weather down easily, but also galvanised steel to help resist the elements. Curtain walling on the rear elevations allow more light into the apartments.
Although this is a high-density development to satisfy PPG3, clever design has also enhanced the apartments by setting the top storey back, creating dual aspect apartments with views front and back, using Juliet balconies and sliding doors, designing for open-plan living, and creating custombuilt plywood staircases with glass-roofed canopies. A high standard of fitting out has given the apartments wood flooring, Category 5 data cabling, Pepper kitchen with branded appliances, porcelain wall tiles, Hansgrohe taps and Philippe Starck sanitary ware.
Firmac is a young but rapidly growing firm of homebuilders, founded in 2002 by Francis Firmstone and Angus Macdonald on the belief that contemporary design, modern building methods and high-quality finishes can help kick-start regeneration in urban areas by providing stylish and individual homes that do not compromise on quality but are affordable for mainly first-time buyers, the two-bedroom apartments selling at prices from £132,000 to £140,000.
With that philosophy, they should go far, and the judges were sufficiently impressed with this
example of their work to give them the award for Best Small Housing Development this year. They look forward to future – and larger - Firmac developments with interest
HomeBuilder: FIRMAC DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED
Springfield House, West Street, Bedminster. Bristol BS3 3NX
Tel 0117 311 8400 Fax 0117 311 8574
Contact: Francis Firmstone, Director
Email: francis@firmacdevelopments.co.uk
Architects: 3W
Thames Wharf Studios, London W6 9HA
Tel 020 7835 5552 Fax 020 7835 5525
Contact:
Andrew Wells, Partner
Email:
awells@3w.org
Website: www.3w.org