House Leiwater 2017

This project, a contemporary infill house on an undeveloped site, triggered Section 31 of the National Heritage Resources Act 25 of 1999 as it falls within the historic core of Stanford village, having been proclaimed an Urban Conservation Area by Government Gazette No 1909 of 15 December 1995 under the old National Monuments Act 28 of 1969. The challenge was how to respond architecturally in a context which dates back to 1857 when De Kleine River Valley farm was subdivided into a grid street pattern with a central public square to form Stanford as we know it today, without undermining authenticity of the town and streetscape. The rich character present in the village is made up of diverse styles ranging from simple cottages of the late 1700’s to Victorian barns and adapted barns to more eclectic gabled houses and villas including Cape Dutch Revival of the early 1900’s. The design resolution drew inspiration from the early cottages as well as barn-type structures resulting in an eclectic form with modern elements. The cranked ridge line of the double pitch Victorian profile metal roof sheeting is a contemporary interpretation of the traditional adobe thatch roof, while the bull-nosed veranda strengthens streetscape viscosity. The siting, parallel to the street, echoes the original urban pattern while wrapping the corner site in the same way that the older structures did. Although the design is sympathetic in scale, form and materials to the urban character and tissue, it is clearly an expression of its time in every other respect.