A Multigenerational Home in Fitzroy – Pool House by Zen Architects

Taking its name from the rooftop swimming pool that formed a key aspect of the brief, Zen Architects’ Pool House gestures to the forms and details of the original Victorian shopfront while creating a new contemporary home designed for entertaining and multigenerational living.

The clients had lived at the address in Fitzroy, in Melbourne’s inner north, for 25 years and in that time had undertaken two previous renovations. Having recently purchased the adjoining lot, with this third and most ambitious incarnation of the home, they were seeking to add a pool and off-street car parking, to achieve a greater sense of connection to the site and neighbourhood context, create a home more oriented towards entertaining, and to instil a level of flexibility that would facilitate a variety of different living arrangements over time.

Zen Architects’ Pool House gestures to the forms and details of the original Victorian shopfront while creating a new contemporary home designed for entertaining and multigenerational living.

Despite the additional space provided by the lot next door, integrating all of these requirements into the project was a challenge, made more complex by the heritage status of the area explains Zen Architects Principal Luke Rhodes. “Our first intention was to uncover how we could accommodate their requirements on the site, and we went back to visit it three or four times to determine the feasibility,” he says.

The previous renovation had added a rooftop terrace accessible only from the master bedroom upstairs, and while the kitchen, living and dining were located on the ground floor, the outdoor space was small and shaded by a high neighbouring brick wall to the north and a large olive tree. The architects decided that elevating the pool and replanning the interior to locate the communal spaces on the first floor adjoining the terrace was the only way to create an open-plan kitchen, living and dining area that would enable the clients to entertain and connect with the previously unused terrace.

“Our first intention was to uncover how we could accommodate their requirements on the site, and we went back to visit it three or four times to determine the feasibility.”

“The best location for the pool on a tight site like this was to elevate it and get into the light. This extends its use not only through the shoulder months of the year but also across the hours of the day,” says Luke. “It gets full sun for most of the day. The elevation also means that both the pool and the terrace have access to views of the city and over the rooftops of the heritage cottages and canopy of trees.”

From street level, the cast concrete base of the pool defines the new addition. The curved form echoes the curves of the neighbouring Victorian residence and, with its low picket fence and a deeper-than-required setback that matches the verandah of the neighbouring cottage, the building balances the contemporary monolithic qualities of the raw concrete with form and composition that speak to the heritage context.

The building balances the contemporary monolithic qualities of the raw concrete with form and composition that speak to the heritage context.

This was achieved through Zen Architects’ close consultation with the Yarra City Council’s heritage advisor and planner. “Brunswick Street north holds significant value in the Yarra heritage scheme, and a pool isn’t a heritage item, so those curved details started to reference what was happening in both the neighbouring residence and the owners’ existing residence,” Luke explains. “Ultimately, we showed that we could respond to the existing fabric and create a contemporary way of living whilst not impacting on the heritage of that frontage.”

The curved motif was then carried throughout the interiors. The island bench, which as a key entertaining zone is overscaled, has curved sections cut out to reduce its mass visually. The woodfire was taken from the existing home and reconditioned – previously built-in, the structure now stands free. The curved detail present in the hearth that wraps back up the wall keeps the floorplate open and flexible, while still giving the clients the benefit of an elevated fireplace. The curved ceiling transition in the kitchen, meanwhile, marks the ceiling level of the original balcony, which was infilled as part of the new works.

Zen Architects emphasised adapting and reusing as much of the original building as possible, says Luke. “First and foremost, before we do anything, we undertake an assessment of what can be kept. Our approach has always been about retaining as much in place as possible. Embodied energy and wastage are huge considerations when deciding whether to demolish.”

While much of the original building envelope was retained, the new plan now offers a far greater level of flexibility. The Pool House will support different living configurations as the family’s needs change. “Their generational mix has changed so many times in the 25 years that they’ve lived on the site, and we’ve now added that additional flexibility,” Luke says. “It’s specifically set up so that the clients’ parents could come and live with them in future, and it’s designed to be accessible, with space for a lift, which will enable ageing-in-place.”

Responding to and uniting the core elements of the brief, the design ensures the home will support its inhabitants for the next 25 years, and beyond.

“First and foremost, before we do anything, we undertake an assessment of what can be kept. Our approach has always been about retaining as much in place as possible. Embodied energy and wastage are huge considerations when deciding whether to demolish.”