River retreat
Taupiri seems an unlikely setting for the winner of the 2018 NZIA Awards Small Projects category. Homeowners Daniel and Samantha Smith had both really enjoyed living in Auckland but wanted a family, and Daniel wanted to design and build their home. “It wasn’t until we chanced upon Taupiri, and realised what extraordinary multi-textured northerly views could be accessed from the back of the riverside sites alongside SH1, that we realised we could achieve the work-life balance we wanted.”
The long, thin section came with a modest roadside bungalow, a councilowned paper road and its own section of river frontage. Subdividing and eventually selling the front house meant relinquishing ownership, but not usage, of that river frontage. A casual home – a bach by any other name – made perfect sense. So too did a materials palette of core essentials: everything metal (joinery, joist hangers) was black, everything processed (plastered walls, structural timbers) was painted white, and everything authentic, such as the oiled cedar external screen and the gaboon ply spine wall, retained the natural timber.
The effect is simultaneously gutsy and elegant. When both walls of the living hub are open the impression is of an almosttented structure.
At 100sqm and with three bedrooms, an office and generous outdoor living areas, this is less than half the size of the average new-build New Zealand house. The Smiths, however, feel nothing has been sacrificed. Land: $300,000 (after subdivision). Build: $410,000 ($4100/sqm; excluding owners’ labour and project management).
What works: “The ability to open the house out in each direction. We also appreciate having different spaces to retreat into as a contrast to the open-plan living area. The mezzanine and bedrooms feel calm and intimate,” says Daniel.
What doesn’t work: “We would love to integrate an outdoor covered space that can be used through all seasons and elements.”