The Developer Journal Issue 2 | Page 39

Service areas have been integrated to be sheltered between buildings as far as possible to save the cost of building enclosures and to keep them out of view. This made it possible for an interactive streetscape to be composed with low walls and hedged fences.  With diversity came the challenge of situating appropriate housing types in the site in a harmonious way to ensure that the extraordinary sense of place is preserved. The nature of certain pockets of the development also necessitated a fresh approach to avoid the costly manipulation of building platforms. The aesthetic quality of the development has been preserved by a series of architectural and landscaping rules applicable to each precinct. These rules address any future building additions and alterations as well as the addition of services. A series of garden apartments was developed that evolved the experience of apartment living to a medium-density, affordable, single residential model. The architects developed simple narrow extruded plan forms for economical construction that can follow the natural contours of the site. Careful consideration was given to material efficiency and foundation- to-roof ratios to ensure that saved cost could be repurposed to introduce full-height doors, purpose-made windows, working shutters, full-height cupboards, and so on to a market that is not usually associated with these elements. www.schabortassociates.co.za Elevation studies, drawing from the Gestalt laws, have been meticulously crafted to create pleasing streetscapes using a simple yet effective method of oscillation to create variation in street facades. ‘The value of texture and shadow as tools to create profound results is greatly underestimated,’ says Wynand Schabort. Colour schemes and material selection were informed by the immediate environment, such as the stone pine forest, fynbos vegetation and boardwalks, as well as the distant glow of the setting sun on the mountains. 39