The back of the house in twilight

Original condition and context

Rear view of the house

The new front entrance

The new kitchen

The living room and new loft

Gerald Forseth Architect

ORIGINAL SITUATION

Context

The context of the Van Snellenberg residence is of a single family dwelling neighborhood, formerly a cottage area for Vancouver residents prior to and shortly after construction of the Lion's Gate Bridge. The community is bissected by Marine Drive; nearby services include adjacent ball grounds and tennis courts, and a convenience store with gas pumps. Adjacent homes are original with some past additions and renovations and still on their original large lots. Site servicing is from Morgan Crescent which is paved but without curbs. There is a dual access circular paved driveway to the carport and front entry.

The property is on relatively flat land between the ocean and the first vertical cliff of Cypress Creek. The Creek is shallow, rugged and rocky except for high run-off time in spring; the lower plateau adjacent to the creek remains untamed and natural; the upper plateau contains the Van Snellenberg half-acre site of original old forest with high cedars supplemented by forty year old seasonal trees, flowering bush, and free-flowing planter beds.

Building

The building is a cottage style house, originally rectangular, with a single storey and steep stair access to dual sleeping spaces in attic. A mechanical room is in a small basement under the kitchen reached by an exterior stair. The original rectangle contained a small kitchen and entry, a dining room, a living room, a bedroom, a bathroom and a laundry room on the main floor. In later years, a large two car carport and storage room were added that changed the building into an L-shape but reused original details on the walls and roof. The dominant colour scheme was barn-red stain with white trim. The house has only been occupied for most of its life by two or three persons.

Limitations, as noted by the owner, included a lack of space, a dark interior, a lack of insulation, poor electrical servicing, outdated plumbing, a shifted foundation in one corner, an outdated kitchen cabinet system and appliances, a too-narrow stair to the attic, worn-out wall paper and faded paint, difficult access to the garden area, a small and deteriorated terrace, faded exterior materials, outdated cedar shakes, dislocated eavestroughs and a general rundown feeling.

Known assets included the basic structurally sound building, to be retained if possible, and a recognition that the small size of building relative to the large lot was both traditional and visually attractive in the area, unlike new houses that appear overwhelming in size over the lot.

THE RESULT

Concept Motivation

The architectural character of this project is achieved by a motivation to repair rather than create; but there is innovation and it lies in the concepts of infill and reuse and in the vocabulary of the new details. The details embrace the cottage images of the original house and also images of ship interiors in the handrail/beam detail; a desire for more spatial openness in the removal of interior doorways; an introduction of natural light into the interior by utilizing dormers; a use of natural and solid materials with a clarity but variety of colours and textures including red brick, various wood species, carpet and rubber flooring coloured to match that of the brick; black steel joints and supports; stainless steel restraining cables for the new cathedral ceiling; and an improvement to the indoor-outdoor flow by the new placement of pairs of french doors to match the original pair.

Renovation/Restoration/Rehabilitation

The owner directed the architect to evaluate and analyze the existing residence for potential to reuse, then, if suitable, to suggest whether to add upwards, or to add sideways, or to infill, or a combination as per the program. On analysis, the economic advantages to infilling the structurally strong carport area as the new bedroom and service wing outweighed all other concepts and it meant that the expanded residence could be subtly integrated into the existing building. Then too, a new carport for three cars was an economic new structure. The implied savings were then redirected into the programmatic needs of the owner so that a few new amenities could be considered in the interior.

Wheras the original house contained 1275 SF, the infill allowed the liveable space to increase to 2080 SF (not including attic, loft, basement or carport).

Programmatically, the owner asked for a new ensuite main bedroom, a new ensuite guest bedroom, a new photography lab, new access to the gardens (which are used as the outdoor office seven months of the year), better light, and an upgrading of all mechanical, electrical, and audio/visual systems. As well, the owner required space for the corporate office of Gallery Cinema (Canada) Inc. into what is a strictly residential site.

As a bonus, once the concept was fixed, the owner also received a multi-use loft area within the cathedral ceiling, a complete media room off the living room, and an art gallery in the corridor

To achieve a finished project, the owner agreed to improve all of the site services includng burying the electrical supply line from the street, overhauling the water and sewer lines, and redefining the automatic flower watering system.

Artisanship

The major renovation work is more "artisinal" than industrial; the Contractor and his subs were called upon to make artistic decisions based on the site condition, including the flawed nature of an existing house that has settled over time into its site and is not perfectly level horizontally nor vertically. Artisanship is seen in the post/beam/handrail systems at the staircase, loft and fireplace; at the cabinets in the kitchen and dining room; at the ceramic tile patterning in the ensuite bedroom; at the "umbrella" of the main entrance; at the stain glass window pattern of the main dormer window; and at the crafted and exposed joist system of the new carport. The infill of the former carport is actually a building "crafted-within-a-building" in that the original post and beam roofed structure and the original concrete parking area are intact and new construction is confined within.

Style

Unmistakenly vintage west coast cottage--a house in the woods--is updated by taking over a bit more site (not a lot of site), and making the subtle change from a traditional L-shape to a traditional U -shape. The cottage is also updated by its bold 1990's bright red exterior colour and playful sculpture af the entry "umbrella". The result is a more forceful presence of the house on its site (including when the upgraded interior and exterior lights are on at night) but not overwhelming to the neighbours nor to the integrity and tradition of the site itself.

Details

There is an additional page with further information.

Plans

View the plans of the Van Snellenberg residence.

All photos by Roger Brooks

Project Details

Location		4351 Morgan Crescent, West Vancouver, British Columbia
Client		Mr. C. Van Snellenberg
Architects		Gerald Forseth Architect
Consultants		Contractor: CAC Construction Ltd., Vancouver Mr. Chris Abbott
Cost		$170 000
Completion		1994
Notes		Furniture: Living Space and Inform Interiors, Vancouver

Other Gerald Forseth Architect Projects

Calgary Visual Arts Centre
Four Square House and Subdivision

This project was published on 1996.05.01.

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