Inside St Clair's most imposing new home

Before the build began, the homeowners used a drone to check the view they would have if they went up three storeys. PHOTOS: NICK BEADLE, STW STUDIO

The open-plan kitchen, dining and living area takes up the entire top floor.

This symmetrical St Clair house has large areas of glass to make the most of the views. Bedrooms and living areas flow on to cantilevered decks.

Corten steel pillars were used in place of plants alongside the house and cubes in the same material feature on the flat roof above the entry.

The bathrooms feature large Italian porcelain tiles, concrete basins and custom-made cabinetry.

Large skylights increase the sense of height on the top level, also bringing natural light into the pared-back interior.

An eye-catching house by the beach perfectly suits its owners’ lifestyle. Kim Dungey reports.

For two years, interested locals watched what was going on just a short distance from the beach in St Clair.

In an area full of older, character homes, a contemporary piece of architecture was taking shape — one with steel framing, precast concrete panels and cantilevered decks.

The three-storey house belongs to empty nesters Brendan and Nicky Murray, who wanted to stay in their beloved beach suburb but in a home that was modern and warm.

Architect Gary Todd said when he first met the couple, they were living in a Victorian villa but looking for something that was ‘‘different, edgy and had a wow factor’’.

Built with structural steel and precast concrete, the house was designed to be long-lasting.

Unlike a traditional house on a quarter-acre section, which could be ‘‘quite introverted and insular’’, Todd envisaged large expanses of glass which would capture sunlight and views, provide different experiences as they moved through the house and connect them to their surroundings.

While contrasting architectural styles could be ‘‘polarising’’, he believed contemporary architecture could sit comfortably alongside heritage buildings — ‘‘showing the way forward instead of replicating the past’’.

To achieve their vision, the couple bought and demolished an existing house. A plan was developed to suit the long, narrow section but partway through the build the adjoining property also came on the market.

Wanting to protect their views and to have more green space, they demolished that too, making sure materials such as the rimu floorboards and stairs went to good homes.

At first, they planned to put just a small shed and a vegetable garden on the second section. However, they eventually decided to indulge their love of tennis and include a full-sized court.

Inside, a centrally-located concrete staircase and glass lift connect all three levels. The lower storeys contain three en suite bedrooms, each with its own deck or terrace, but the standout space is the open-plan kitchen-dining-living area that takes up all of the top floor.

‘‘The house was built around the fact the owners wanted to make the most of the sun and the views,’’ architect Gary Todd says.

Oak battens wrap around the ceiling, walls and kitchen cabinets, making the entire room feel like a well-crafted piece of joinery. Large skylights flood the room with natural light, decks flow off either end and the view is expansive — taking in the immediate neighbourhood, the city skyline, the ocean and the rocky headland of Lawyer’s Head.

Mr Murray said their favourite spot was at the breakfast bar, watching the sun rise and the suburb come to life.

‘‘We hang out in the kitchen most of the time, so a big thing was having a big, open kitchen. And having two islands is just the best thing because it gives you heaps of space.’’

Calm, neutral colours and an interior that was ‘‘minimal, comfortable and modern’’ were important to the couple. The limited material palette creates a cohesive look, soft textiles and blonded timber offering a contrast to the concrete and steel.

Practicalities haven’t been forgotten. A ventilation system delivers fresh, filtered air and systems such as lighting, heating and security features can be controlled remotely via their phones or through tablets on the walls.

Builder Mitch Todd, of Moda Homes, said it took a full five months to complete the interior linings.

The two kitchen islands have dark Dekton bench tops, crisscrossed with veins of gold. The battens used on the walls and ceiling were continued on the front of cupboards and appliances; a scullery is tucked in behind the concrete wall.

The 5000 linear metres of timber battens which line the walls and conceal interior doors were sanded and coated by the painters on site, installed by the builders and, finally, given a clear finishing coat.

Setting them out took almost as much time as putting them up because they had to line up with every appliance, structural panel and steel post. This involved working closely with Stevenson & Williams to ensure the battens on the ceiling aligned with those the joiners had incorporated into the kitchen joinery.

Other challenges included putting up the exterior aluminium cladding in a grid formation — ensuring it lined up with window and door openings — and working with the precast concrete panels.

‘‘Being residential builders, we were pretty new to that, so it took a bit of figuring out. But we craned in about 20 panels, some of them for retaining walls and then three really big ones that went in the middle for the staircase.’’

Gary Todd said credit had to go to the owners, the builders and landscape designer Wayne Butson.

‘‘The project succeeded because at the end of the day, everybody has had a holistic vision and executed it really well.’’

Mrs Murray said while the house was ‘‘quite a contrast’’ to others in the neighbourhood, it had been softened and ‘‘camouflaged a wee bit’’ by over 1000 plants, including mature olive trees and 3.5m-high magnolias.

Her husband added they’ve had nothing but positive feedback on the 380sqm property.

‘‘I suppose it was quite intriguing when we were building it because it was just a massive steel frame. A lot of people thought it was apartments. [Another person] joked that the hospital had finally started but they’d built it in the wrong place.’’

Ultimately, the house was ‘‘very easy to live in, considering it’s three storeys’’ and ideally suited to their lifestyle.

‘‘It’s like a permanent holiday living in it.’’