Kitchen Extension

18 Bowater place, Greenwich SE3

Context

The proposal is for a two-storey extension to a terraced Georgian house in a locally designated Conservation Area, adjacent to the Old Dover Road and its connection with Kent. The house has a ramshackle collection of lean-to extensions at the rear and the owners wish to renovate the whole of the back area by building a two storey extension that would create a new kitchen and dining space on the ground floor and a new bathroom and larger bedroom on the first floor. The existing collection of structures is presently dilapidated and includes various temporary structures, which have become neglected over many years of little or no maintenance. The owners wish to reinstate the house to a good standard.

DESIGN

The existing party wall with 16 Bowater Place extends as far as the proposal and therefore would not incur any lack of light nor create any overbearing on this side. The extension would not obscure light or create overbearing on 20 Bowater Place because it extends only as far as a 45 degree projected line extends and therefore would not create a sense of overbearing. The proposal for the roof is to create an extension of the existing roof with a hipped end so as to reduce any sense of overbearing with neighbours at Bowater or Reynolds Place. The ground floor would extend beyond the first floor extension and have a glass- panelled roof. Below this would hang four folding glass doors. On the first floor a new bathroom is created in the middle of the house that would have a skylight and maintain the existing fireplace. The extended bedroom would also have a skylight. The landing would be opened up and have a skylight as well. As will the new bathroom. At the front of the house the proposal includes the replacement of the existing windows with white painted timber sash double glazed windows and the creation of a front garden with Georgian style iron railings and new planting. The existing stairway first floor window is very small and it is proposed that this is replaced by a new window- to match the next-door sash window. Also the existing rear first floor sash window is to be maintained and used on the rear of the new extension. The overall composition of the doors and the glass extension on the ground floor reflect the horizontality of the house and have mullions, which enhance this. Also the choice of four doors rather than any more maintain this character.

ACCESS

The proposal includes the creation of a new door in the hallway on the side of the stairs to access the kitchen. The existing floor change in level will be maintained and the kitchen will lead out directly on level with the garden. The stairway will be maintained, but the new landing will open this space to create a more open space.

MATERIALS

The proposed roof will be of matching slates and extend to form a hipped end. The extension shall be constructed of timber frame and have black painted weatherboarding that would be in keeping with the local Blackheath vernacular and its associations with Kent, The Old Dover Road. The doors are proposed to be black painted steel framed glass doors with mullions. The architrave that surrounds these doors is also to be of black painted weatherboarding. The rainwater pipes and gutters are to be of black pressed metal. The roof on the side of the extension is to be covered in lead and the skylight strip within this area is to be an upstanding surround with self-cleaning glass.

CONCLUSION

The first floor extension extends the same distance as that of the existing party wall and so does not obscure any aspect of number 16 Bowater Place. The ground floor extension extends less distance than the existing extension and does not on the first floor obscure any sightlines or light of 20 Bowater Place. The improvements that will be made to this small Georgian terraced house will generally reinstate it to a good condition and the clients are keen to make sure that all details of construction are produced to the highest quality, partly due to the owner being a builder himself and also due to their appreciation of period houses. The desire to create a weather-boarded extension reflects this desire to create something special yet in keeping with the local history and vernacular of Blackheath. In conclusion this modest extension and its various renovations will make this dilapidated and neglected a newly functioning home for modern living without compromising neighbours or the house itself. In fact the small extension that is proposed will harmonise and improve a near derelict collection of outhouses into something habitable.