Landscape & Urban Design Issue 34 2018 | Page 20

ON THE WATERFRONT Roger Webster has been running his The site lies on the bank of a tidal streets, many not wide enough for garden design practice from Exeter estuary and is surrounded by historic cars, giving enticing glimpses of the for over twenty years, with projects buildings and narrow streets which open water beyond. across Devon and the Southwest. bustle with activity during summer Domestic gardens for private clients evenings and weekends. The are the mainstay of the practice. challenges were to maximise views A recently completed project is this garden of a contemporary replacement house in a stunning waterfront location. Roger was engaged from the early stages, working with the clients and architects to obtain planning consent for the redevelopment which lies within a Conservation Area. 20 Landscape & Urban Design Issue 34 2018 over the estuary whilst also providing shelter and to balance the need for privacy with the clients’ desire to present an open and neighbourly aspect to the street. The garden unfolds as a sequence of enclosed spaces linked by carefully considered views and routes: a vehicle entrance and gravelled parking area; separate pedestrian entrance from the street; enclosed “green rooms” screened from neighbouring properties and sheltered from the Inspiration was taken from the close coastal winds; an open decked seating grained texture of the historic town area adjoining the main reception whose tightly packed houses and room with magnificent 180 degree secluded courts are pierced by narrow views over the water and a smaller