Lasswade Road

This project was one of the first for the newly merged Dunedin Canmore Housing Association and as such they were looking for a flagship project, with particular emphasis on sustainability and the incorporation of strong environmental principles in the design.

The brief was to provide a mix of housing types on the site, including 3no fully DDA accessible special needs units for specific tenants. The completed project provides this mix with wheelchair accessible bungalows, 2 and 3 bedroom terraced housing and 1 & 2 bedroomed flats. They are located on a Gateway site in Lasswade which is on the southern approach to the city.

The expression of the housing, constructed in lightweight timber frame, is very simple, deliberately avoiding mannered ‘add-ons’ in favour of more traditional materials and detailing. Nonetheless the character is contemporary and with detailing and material selection that gives clean lines and low maintenance.

The environmental aspects of the brief were met with the re-use of slate, stone and fill materials from demolition of the existing buildings on the site, the use of recycled insulation to higher standards than required by the current technical standards and passive ventilation and heat recovery.

A woodpellet boiler district heating system serves all the units, removing the need for servicing of 31 individual boilers. The buildings are orientated to maximise solar gain, benefiting from enclosed south facing garden areas. A Sustainable Urban Drainage System (SUDS) reduces the impact of water run off to the burn. We also selected of low maintenance materials and minimised embodied energy in the specified materials.

Lasswade Road