Design Team
Chung Meng Ker
Design Data
Client: Comprehensive Developments Pte Ltd
Site
Area: 1,655 sq m
Site Coverage: 52.78 %
Plot Ratio: 1 : 1.093
Gross Floor Area: 1,809.18 sq m
Building type: 8 townhouses
This small residential development on a 1,650 square metre suburban site utilises the steep slope to provide split-level town-houses in an L-shaped configuration. Vehicular access is restricted to one side of the site and car parking is provided in the basement.
The site of the development is a short distance from Mount Rosie upon
which there once stood an old colonial house which inspired Tay Kheng
Soon in his undergraduate days. The house used a number of devices to
cope with the tropical climate, most of them borrowed from the traditional
vernacular, such as the wide overhanging eaves and timber 'mesh' screens
to filter the intense sunlight.
The old house provided elements of the architectural grammar which Akitek
Tenggara used to give Chancery Lodge its tropical character. Jack-roofs
are used and a system of open timber trellis beams provide shade and visually
integrate the whole development. The timber trellis beams are supported
on large steel brackets which are bolted into the rough-cast plaster finished
walls.
A special detail has been developed for the toilet windows. Twin timber
braces span between the roof rafters and the external wall. The twin braces
carry a timber mesh screen and form window boxes which can serve as planting
shelves. This is a detailed development of the language of line, edge,
mesh and shade. The whole development has the understated good taste that
Tay Kheng Soon terms 'Malayan'.
"There is an underlying layer located in the subconscious of the peoples of this region, which was acquired in ancient times which influences our sense of rhythm, proportions, colour and form preferences."
