Mornington Peninsula Architect
Area details –
Region
Mornington Peninsula
Traditional Owners
Bunurong
Working on the Mornington Peninsula is a welcome contrast to our metropolitan projects, and it is a region we have come to know well. We love our regular site visits to the Peninsula and have strong connections to local builders and trades.
Our two completed projects in the region sit in different contexts. Flinders House is set in an established garden with a rural feel, while Mornington House is perched on a steep triangular site with views across the bay. Both have been widely recognised in publications.
The opportunities and constraints on these sites differ from the rest of our residential portfolio, but the process and the rigour are the same. The work to date has been on holiday homes, and it has been a pleasure to design for a slower pace.
Mornington House
A new timber holiday home with its structure left expressed throughout, from the columns and beams that define each room to the mass-timber ceilings overhead. Built on stilts, it floats over the landscape while staying embedded in the surrounding greenery. Mornington House was on the cover of Green Magazine.
Flinders House
A modernist holiday home using contemporary materials and exacting details, built on the footprint of the home it replaced so the mature planting could be kept intact and made the hero throughout.
Do you have experience with Mornington Peninsula Shire planning?
Yes. Both our completed projects in the region worked through the Shire’s planning requirements. Depending on the site, a project might need to respond to bushfire ratings, flood levels, vegetation protection, or covenants limiting height. Mornington House alone had to negotiate a flood plain, a bushfire rating and a two-storey limit. We usually coordinate all planning matters ourselves, and know when to bring in a bushfire, land surveying or planning subconsultant on a complex site.
How do you approach a site with established landscape or a sensitive setting?
If the site has a significant garden, we typically recommend working with a landscape architect we can collaborate with from the start of the project. The response to the garden and site should influence the result. At Flinders House, retaining the established planting was a priority from the outset, and at Mornington House the building was raised on stilts so it could float over the site and create landscaping opportunities.
What kind of Mornington Peninsula projects do you take on?
Holiday homes and permanent residences, on coastal, garden and rural sites, from sensitive renovations to new builds where the site allows. We welcome a diverse range of projects across different budgets and scales. We’re drawn to clients who care about design and are excited by what their site or home could become.
If our work resonates, we’d be glad to hear from you.
Please call or send some details about your project, and we’ll be in touch.
Contact:
(03) 9010 5590
info@foomann.com.au