T.A.D. were commissioned to deliver the redevelopment of a former garage site in Kettering as the first venture by the local Council to deliver their own housing developments for a number of years. This scheme was the first of several planned by the Council across the area focussing on small infill sites.
The scheme involved the demolition of the existing redundant garages previously used by other local residents and the provision of 6 1-bedroom dwellings with associated parking and landscaping works. The development demonstrates our ability to maximise the potential of tight urban infill sites.
The choice of dwelling size had already been pre-selected by the client as that most in demand in the area and an initial appraisal had been undertaken by others for the site showing 2 pairs of semi-detached dwellings and 2 detached dwellings. This made effective use of the site but didn't take into account the existing semi-mature trees on the corner of the site.
T.A.D. re-assessed the original layout and provided alternative layouts that sought to retain existing trees where possible, but also considered consultation with Highways about parking provision and adjacencies to junctions which were an issue with the previous design. Further options for alternative unit types were considered but the relatively shallow site depth meant there were significant issues with loss of privacy to existing dwellings and their gardens with any 2-storey solution.
Whilst ideas along the lines of our Bole Hill Lane scheme were discussed, the distances were still to narrow and the demand for such houses, with what would be quite small gardens, was limited. In reviewing the design, we considered the viability of such a marginal site and sought to manage value from the scheme by merging the detached dwellings into another pair of semis and adjusting the layout accordingly to reduce construction costs. The final scheme therefore better addressed the street frontage and provides a consistent floor plan across all units to maximise the potential benefits of offsite construction and/or standardisation between units.
Initial designs for the external fabric, shown on the aerial view on the previous page, show verge and brickwork detailing that was not consistent with the surrounding context. Design development and consultation removed these details and replaced them with a corbelled brick verge and chimneys to better integrate the development into the surrounding context. Further design improvements were made through soft landscaping to the front of the properties to create a better boundary between the public and private spaces. Boundary walls/fencing facing the pavement was developed to provide a resilient, but attractive boundary treatment to the street.
