Over the years Arcline has become one of the leading Architectural Designers in Kerikeri, with hundreds of homes designed and built in the region.
With empty sections in Kerikeri quickly filling, space is getting tight and difficult sites are being used. Many would have perceived this property in Forest Heights as unusable, however the Team at Arcline stepped forward with a solution.
Alderton Park, Kerikeri
Alderton Park is a quiet subdivision nestled into the hillside facing the Kerikeri Inlet. It is in essence a valley, sheltered from the wind on three sides, with most properties having a North to East orientation.
This was the chosen spot for our clients, and they purchased a site on Forest Heights.
Designing on a Difficult Site
The aim was to fit a suitable number of bedrooms, bathrooms and living spaces, along with a double garage onto the steep & challenging site. To heighten the challenge the clients requested a pool, as you’ll see in the images below. It’s a common request with Kerikeri architectural design, with the hot summer months we experience.
Stack Bonded Retaining Walls
To make the best use of the site we used retaining walls behind and underneath the home to snug it into the hillside. Block retaining is very effective and the clients decided that stack-bonding the blocks was the best look for their home.
Kerikeri Architectural Design – Tips
The first tip is to get a good engineer to do a comprehensive Geotechnical Site Suitability Test. Even the flat, seemingly faultless sites can require engineer designed foundations due to the quality of the soil.
Secondly, we obviously would suggest using a local designer, familiar with soil types and who has been designing in the area for awhile. However, there is certainly nothing wrong with using an out of town designer.
Forest Heights Home
Take a further look through the Forest Heights Home in the below images. Lacking in furniture and landscaping the home looks a little bare, but keep an eye on Our Projects page for photos once the home is complete.
