New Garden, Swim Spa & Waterfalls, at Pangeza Street House, Stafford, Brisbane
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The owners now tend to spend much more of their recreation time at home, in these gardens which use the “borrowed” landscape of the surrounding trees to create a bushland retreat which extends far beyond the boundary of their own yard.

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The Design Brief

The clients had purchased a swimspa for home based outdoor aquatherapy. This unit weighs almost 1 tonne full, is 6m long, 2.3m wide, & stands 1.5 metres high. The installation threatened to overwhelm the natural backyard bushland.

The problem of how to locate it was compounded by a steep diagonal slope across the site, as well as a council sewer main which bisects the property, precluding the ability to build in the middle of the yard.

The owners came to realise that the swimspa would need to be incorporated into an overall landscape design strategy in order for it to contribute to & extend their enjoyment of their bushland backyard.

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Environmental Considerations
Well established trees and shrubs characterise this bushland backyard. The house opens onto a sheltered north facing open yard space, which slopes northwards away from the house. The owners have a 3 phase solar electrical installation, which they use to power the numerous small waterfall features throughout the garden. It also powers the artificial waterfall, designed & installed by AquaScapes. This flows down the natural slope, past the end of the sandstone courtyard with the fire pit, wrapping around the lower timber deck, so the owners are surrounded by the sound of the running water when lying in their hammocks.
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Architectural Response

To soften the impact of the swimspa we designed several tiered but connected decks, stepping down the slope, and optimising their enjoyment of the northern aspect. The first is a new timber Morning Deck, leading directly off the house, sunny in winter, shady in summer, where the clients can enjoy their breakfast, looking through the bush towards the second Swimspa Deck. Connecting & centred between the 2 timber decks is a lushly planted sandstone paved Courtyard where family & friends gather. It features a barbecue, fire pit & several different water features. This courtyard leads onto the timber Swimspa Deck. Although the deck is level with the Courtyard, by cutting into the natural slope & stepping down the slab for the swim spa, the top edge of the spa forms a continuous low seat around edge which makes it easy to climb into from anywhere along its edge. This deck is surrounded by established trees & shrubs, enabling the owners to lie in their hammocks, lost in their bushland sanctuary, overlooking their waterfall, and gazing into the trees above.

By designing the gardens to fit into the fall of the landscape, in response to the prevailing sun & breezes, the spa has been integrated into the greater whole of this large & varied gathering place. The strategy has been a success: the owners now tend to spend much more of their recreation time at home, in these gardens which use the “borrowed” landscape of the surrounding trees to create a bushland retreat which extends far beyond the boundary of their own yard.

Photography Credits: Peter Johnson, Lux Capacity Photography.
New Garden, Swim Spa & Waterfalls, at Pangeza Street House, Stafford, Brisbane
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Kind Words

"We employed John Scandurra (Architect) to design the renovations to our family home situated in Deagon, QLD. He listened to our ideas so very carefully and then interpreted them in ways that made them so much better.

Throughout our renovations, many things impressed us about John Scandurra. However, his calm demeanour and ability to never present a problem without a choice of solutions, his excellent project and time management skills as well as his ability to interpret and listen to our needs as clients are amongst his greatest assets.

John has been an incredible find. I would recommend him to anyone and everyone."

Alison James & Glen Goldspink, Deagon, Qld

"We first met John Scandurra when we requested a meeting to explore our plans for renovations to our pre-war house at Hawthorne. We were pleasantly surprised at how open John was to listening to our ideas and turning them into achievable plans.  We found John easy to deal with and full of interesting ideas. The melding process of our ideas with his was an exciting journey and at no time did we find John forcing concepts on us.

In the event that we did another renovation, we would have no hesitation in contracting John to be the architect. We have found him to be a warm and friendly person who was always available to discuss concepts and meet when necessary. Nothing was too much of a problem for him and he always approached matters in a calm and helpful way. Our greatest accolade for John is that he is always suggesting new ideas and innovative ways to tackle a problem."

James & Julieanne Seymour, Hawthorne, Qld

"It is over 18 months since I moved into the house John Scandurra designed for me and it still delights me as much as the day I moved in. I had a wish list and John was able to incorporate those ideas into the final design but beyond that he contributed so much more. His design suggestions were such that they immediately appealed to me and I appreciate them daily.

He was open to and sought ideas from others. When the builder made suggestions he valued them and the final effect was enhanced yet the build was completed under budget. For me the project was not only stress free but an exciting exploration and development of ideas. It has been a wonderful experience and the house is much admired by my friends. "

Jennifer Peat, Deagon, Qld

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