90 | Brooksfield - Bunyan Street T T Richard Loader Georgian style sets project apart The site, running parallel to the road, proved perfect for developing a row of Georgian style townhouses. DEVELOPMENT What drew Christchurch property development company Brooksfield to the Bunyan Street site in the suburb of Waltham was that unlike the vast majority of residential sites throughout New Zealand, it ran wide and parallel to the road side. “That meant it was perfect for developing a row of Georgian style townhouses that faced the road, with each house having its own front door to the street,” says Brooksfield Director Vinny Holloway. “Typically, that’s just not possible because most sites run at right angles to the road. We drew inspiration for this development from the famous red brick Blackheath terrace building in Durham Street that commenced construction in the 1870s.” Located at the upper end of Bunyan Street the development is just 100 metres from the leafy suburb of St Martins, and while the price points reflect Waltham, the townhouses are literally on St Martins’ doorstep. “Bunyan Street is a lovely street and has Waltham Park on it, which most of the houses in the development look out onto. It’s also very close to the Cashmere Hills, with lots mountain biking and outdoor activities.” Replacing a very earthquake damaged home, the development consists of nine adjoining terrace houses, that were all sold off the plan before construction commenced, with price points of $620,000 for two bedrooms and $750,000 for three bedrooms. “We have a lot of people who, by choice rather than necessity, want to live in a smaller house. A large proportion of our buyers are down sizers who want something easy, and don’t want the big backyard any longer. On this occasion there were five owner/occupiers and four investors. The main contractor on the project was O’Connell Builders, and construction was completed early June this year.” While each terrace house is two-storey in terms of the building code, the addition of a dormer window with an attic tucked into the roof on six of the houses provides a third level consisting of a bedroom, bathroom and wardrobe. “Once you get into building a three-storey house in areas like Waltham they become unaffordable, so the dormer window/attic provides a good option to create additional space. The ground floor encompasses kitchen dining at one end, and living room at the other end, separated by the stairs. The second level includes two bedrooms and a bathroom. Each townhouse has its own private section running back off the street, and their own backyard. There are courtyards off the kitchen dining, and a courtyard off the living area.” While one of the houses has its own garage, the rest have off-street carparks accessed through an underpass beneath the upper level of one of the houses. With houses ranging from 75sqm to 100sqm, what really sets this development apart is its Georgian style and the use of red brick cladding, with regular rows of windows within white joinery. Vinny acknowledges that the addition of dormer windows gives the development a distinctly colonial New Zealand twist. Brooksfield, was founded by Vinny Holloway and Ollie Hickman in 2018, with a dream of contributing to the beauty of their city. “Brooksfield is about the home as a beautifully designed residential product that people want to live in and which shapes the look and feel of our city and that’s what we’re really focused on achieving. We loved the style of homes in Christchurch before the earthquake and want to help create a city that people still love to live in through its architecture.” Both partners bring complementary skill sets to the table. While Ollie studied property valuation at Lincoln University, Vinny is a qualified builder. EXPERT ELECTRICIANS IN CHRISTCHURCH We Specialise in New Townhouses, Multi-Unit Developments, Architectural Homes, & Residential Maintenance. 027 503 3696 metaelectrical.co.nz → Roofing • New Roofs • Re-roofing • Concrete Tiles • Metal Tiles • Longrun → Bricks → Scaffold & Edge Protection • The expert painters • Professional painting services • Affordable and reliable Interested? Call our professional painters on 021 121 3415! probrushpainters@hotmail.co.nz
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