South Architects and LOC Construction formed a formidable partnership in the creation of this outstanding forever home, where strong family connections were paramount.

WORDS Kathy Catton PHOTOGRAPHY MoMac Socialising Media

There’s a lot to be said for building a simple, architecturally designed home. For one, you know you’re going to get a home built to a high standard and secondly, you know you’ll have a home that’s easy to live in.

Add to that the comfort of knowing you’ve got friendly neighbours, and it’s looking close to being a dream home. For these homeowners, their neighbours were, in fact, instrumental in them building this delightful family home.

“My parents are our neighbours,” says the homeowner. “It’s amazing how it’s worked out. Their section was originally two sections, and so when my husband and I returned from overseas, they suggested building on the front section.”

EVERY ANGLE EXACT LOC Construction built from South Architects, plans with a superior and timely finish.

Luckily there’s a close-knit relationship between the two families, and all parties were delighted with the prospect of living close together in a desirable part of Christchurch.

“We never thought we’d build,” says the homeowner. “But the idea of getting exactly what you want was very appealing. We had a tight budget to stick to, so it was always a balance, but we are thrilled with our forever home.”

The couple worked with South Architects’ Craig South. Renowned for his multi-award-winning homes throughout Christchurch, Craig has firmly established himself and his practice as a thorough, robust and responsive firm, that is entirely in tune with its clients.

“We were asked to build a four-bedroom, family home, with the ability to adapt into the future,” says Craig. “The size requirements of this site meant the home had to be clever with its form, material palette and construction techniques.”

With a focus on simplicity, the firm has designed a strong gable form running along the length of the site but sliced back to expose the entry to the street façade and an outdoor courtyard to the northwest corner of the site. Inside, the 260 square metre home is full of natural materials and simple colours and has some beautiful ceiling volumes and innovative spacing ideas.

For example, there are built-in units under the television, and the window bench seating has storage beneath it. The office is cleverly hidden behind a large sliding door in the ‘den’. When in use, the office can comfortably spill out into the den space, but when not in use closes away to expose a bookshelf. It’s a creative touch that really makes this home unique.

LAND TO SCAPE Squire Landscaping did an incredible job in taming the exteriors and providing a clean garden to cultivate.

This display of angles is dominant throughout the home. The scissor-type effect of the entranceway means once inside the home, you feel immediately encapsulated by the place. The high raking ceiling and entranceway give the home a welcoming and open feel.

“We had to be conscious of the footprint of the home,” says the homeowner. “This clever use of angles, like the scissor effect of the entranceway structure and the fin feature in the hallway both work really well to reduce the overall footprint and make the home feel spacious but simple.”

Simplicity was certainly the key to ensuring this project’s feasibility. “I believe the design of this home has an amazing result,” says Craig. “It shows that a creative approach to design can create a cost-effective solution.”

OUTSTANDING FINISH The Rockcote exterior cladding lends itself perfectly to this clean-angled home in Christchurch.

LOC Construction was brought in after the design phase to carry out the build, but the team has worked with South Architects previously on award-winning projects, so it was a great fit. The homeowner comments that LOC Construction stood out within the competitive tender process, as they could deliver within the price and timeframe requirements. “And they didn’t disappoint,” says the homeowner.

The homeowners were over the moon with the building team, saying they were great with communication and kept them informed along the way and responded promptly to any questions they had.

Founder of the business, Les O’Connell, is no stranger to success. He won a gold medal in the coxless four at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, having been part of a New Zealand world champion eight in 1982 and a New Zealand world champion coxed four in 1983. This sporting career and these results are reflected in how he and his team build.

“You don’t get to the top by cutting corners and only doing what everyone else is doing,” says Les. “If you want to be at the top, you’ve got to do more, you’ve got to be better at it, and do it more often. This is the same attitude I bring to my building.”

This attitude has clearly paid dividends when entering the Master Builders House of the Year Awards, with wins each year the company has entered this very competitive event.

For the homeowners, knowing they had chosen a reliable, high-quality, award-winning builder meant they could trust the team to get on with the build.

FRESH CLEAN STYLE All bathroom fixtures and fittings were supplied by Oakleys Plumbing and give the home a beautiful modern feel.

“Trust is very important to us because of our reputation,” says Tom O’Connell, son to Les, and now General Manager of LOC Construction. “We trust our team to do a great job, and we enjoy developing our own builders. We currently employ and train two apprentices and have five full-time builders on the team. And with Les as the quality-control man, you know that everything will be of the highest standard.”

It’s this ‘above and beyond’ mentality that really thrilled the homeowners. For example, “We had seen a photo of a floating vanity we liked, and the team at LOC built it for us,” the homeowner says.

“The collaboration between architect, homeowners and ourselves made this a dream job, which is why we love to build in this high end architectural area,” says Tom. “It doesn’t have to be expensive or difficult to build your dream home, you just need the right team to get you there.

Despite being built at a time of Covid, and with building materials becoming increasingly harder to come by, this home was finished on time and on budget.

This beautifully simple aesthetic looks like a pleasure to live in. To quote the famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright, “The architect should strive continually to simplify; the ensemble of the rooms should then be carefully considered that comfort and utility may go hand in hand with beauty.”

This has undoubtedly been achieved here.