SO – I’ve been busy – do you mind?

THE CLEVER PLAN FOR THE TOWNHOUSE AND BIKE SHOP

The only connection from the townhouse to the rear yard is via a tiny door at the rear of the bike shop.  I think the townhouse needs an internal stair from the main floor to the rear yard. Lets carve out a piece of the concrete floor.....don’t forget to ask a French engineer if that‘s OK!

The new spot for the stair to the second floor- let’s hope you’re allowed to use 5 or 6 winders in a row.

Let’s take out the non-load bearing wall and put the kitchen and dining room in the new large room.  All we need now is a door between the new kitchen and the old living room.  Hey, don’t forget to put in a steel lintel when you chip out the 17” thick stone wall!

The French House

 
The front of the house (the small house on the far left) faces a beautiful chateau in a park setting (good) and a busy road (bad).

The Elevation Empire

In December 2009 we bought a 90 year old, 3 storey commercial building on Queen Street East. It was a noble pile, but in need of care and attention - basic maintenance was an idea last visited in the 1970’s.  We moved from our Kingston Rd storefront to a   cozy, non-hierarchical office space (ie: small) on the second floor. However, without a retail presence on the ground floor we worried about visibility. We didn’t need a storefront, but we needed a sign.  It had to say “Elevation Architects lives here”.

Live/Work Loft on a Lane - A Modern Design!

THE SET UP

This 2 storey, 3000 ft², light industrial building was zoned live/work.   It was being used as a prop house on the ground floor and living space on the second floor. There were two enclosed staircases to the second floor and many small dark rooms. An unstable spiral staircase led to the 3^rd floor catwalk entrance to the roof deck. A rotting green house with leaky window sat on the roof.

 With the 11 foot ceilings, exposed steel structure and unobstructed floor plate this pile of bricks had potential! Originally the clients had planned to make just a few small changes....move a few walls, change a few fixtures, update the kitchen, a good scrub and a coat of paint...... It became apparent through a brief design investigation that a bolder intervention would be required.

THE CLIENTS DESIGN BRIEF

The owners needs were simple – a couple of bedrooms, a multi-media studio, professional kitchen, expansive walls for a fantastic  art collection, massive and uninterrupted living space for soirees,  and roof deck capable of accommodating 50 for dinner...and possibly dancing.

OUR CUNNING PLAN

We decided to turn the space upside down.  With the bedrooms, studio and storage on the ground floor, the entire second floor could be devoted to living/entertaining space.  The existing steel structure allowed the design to be entirely open concept.  And, of course, a big space screams out for a big stair – an organizing element that ties all the spaces together – from the ground floor entry hall to the 3^rd floor roof terrace.  The stair became the star of the space.

 THE DETAILS

The five foot wide switchback steel stair with glass rails was expertly fabricated by RealeBorn

The existing ground floor concrete slab was a bit of a mess.  We levelled it with a lightweight concrete topping and included in-floor hydronic heat.  The floor was polished and sealed. 

The smaller bedroom has a sleeping loft with walk-in closet and ensuite bath below – it’s very cool.

Rolling barn doors and pocket doors are custom sizes

The kitchen cabinet doors and gables were constructed out of resin (Olympic kitchens, “parapan” high gloss acrylic)....it’s very cool.
Brilliant green paint finish on the drywall window returns eliminated the need for casing/trim – yeah.

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