New home: Wakefield Street House, North Lakes, Morten Bay City
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The client desired a lower-maintenance house with an emphasis on visual privacy, spaces to entertain and host family and friends overnight, and to achieve the highest current energy efficiency rating. She also hoped to draw on some of the classic features she would miss in her old house.

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The Design Brief

This project called for a new, smaller home for a single-occupant owner looking to downsize from a larger, original Queenslander home.

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Environmental Considerations

Wall and ceiling insulation, the implementation of passive design principles, and the careful placement of walls and alcoves have resulted in a house that is not only highly energy efficient but private and quiet. A solar hot water unit, rainwater tanks, and a secluded computer nook with a hidden door access were also installed.

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Architectural Response

Wakefield Street House manages to retain the spatial qualities and the old-world leadlight features reinterpreted from the client’s original classic Queenslander and marries it with modern conveniences. The new house is influenced by the double gabled façade of the old house to create two long pavilions under two double-pitched roofs.

The larger, open pavilion features a curved ceiling which runs from the front, right through to the back verandah. At its highest point reaching 3.5 metres, curving down to 2.7 metres at the sides, floating over the shared living, dining, and outdoor entertaining areas. At the front of the house is a striking, three-sided custom-made, leadlight glass-enclosed morning room that visitors refer to as ‘the cathedral’.

The two pavilions are connected by a large open kitchen, with the second smaller pavilion housing the owner’s private bathing and sleeping quarters. It is characterised by the custom timber-framed, leadlight casement windows in the main bedroom.

New home: Wakefield Street House, North Lakes, Morten Bay City
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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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