Bardolph Gardens

In an effort to harness the potential of the under-utilised space behind two Californian bungalows, our clients wanted to deliver well designed, sustainable and affordable rental housing.

Each room is effortlessly connected to the outdoors creating liveable, light filled spaces. In the kitchen and living areas, large north facing glazing opens up to a generous outdoor deck. A series of hit-and-miss brick screens create small private courtyards to draw in air and dappled light.

Being rental properties, finishes needed to be low maintenance and durable. A pared back, humble and robust material palette ensures longevity of the dwellings.

Bardolph Gardens sets an example for delivering sustainable, affordable and well designed rental housing. The dwellings are fossil fuel free in operations and are located near public transport and local amenity.

We prioritised delivering rental housing that was considered and robust in its design approach – something not often seen in the housing market.

With this in mind, Bardolph Gardens celebrates the suburban prominence of brick materiality. The recycled brick facade adds value to the streetscape with a simple, contemporary aesthetic. The form and pitch of the roof planes respond to those of its neighbouring houses, homogenising the forms with the surrounding character.

Bardolph Gardens has been carefully designed to maximise thermal performance through its building envelope, double glazing and orientation, and operating entirely from a zero fossil fuel services system.

Each dwelling achieves a minimum of 8 stars NATHERS. With passive design in mind, the dwellings incorporate plenty of thermal mass, and prioritising winter solar heat gains, sun shading and cross ventilation. Rainwater is collected and stored on site and plumbed back into toilets and garden taps for re-use.

At Breathe, we always prioritise ethics over aesthetics. Designed with material sustainability at the forefront, materials are recycled, recyclable and locally sourced where possible.

Dwellings are carefully designed to maximise thermal performance through its building envelope, thermally broken double glazing and orientation. Both dwellings operate entirely from a zero fossil fuel services system, including a solar PV array and electric heat pump system that supplies hot water.

The pared back palette consists of concrete floors, white plasterboard walls, white and timber veneer joinery, recycled timber bench tops and terrazzo tiles ensuring the longevity of each dwelling.