Designing to suit a very steep building site

Does your dream home need to be built on deep, sloping land? No problem! The Traditional Queenslanders team has successfully constructed many homes on steep building sites.

We met our clients on a site with magnificent views they were considering buying. They had seen one of our homes in Bowen, which they loved. The clients asked if we could build a home for them, with a similar appearance, but on this very different site and to meet their desired budget.

The problem was that the home in Bowen is on a level block of land, with good soil and no access difficulties.  The land at Yarrawonga, on the slopes of Castle Hill in Townsville, was not only extremely steep, but had buried rocks and very high wind exposure. Additional challenges posed by the design brief were to include two living areas to accommodate their young adult family members separately, four-car accommodation and a workshop area.

 

slophome

The design process resulted in a home which fitted perfectly into the diagonally sloping site. The different sections of the home were completed across four levels, with the lower level floor only partly underneath the upper floor. We did not disturb the natural ground, apart from anchoring the foundations. The natural slope allowed rainwater to simply run away underneath, without the need for expensive retaining walls or excessive drainage costs. Each floor takes advantage of the views with its own rotunda for outdoor entertainment. The garage is built with a raised timber floor, elevated on steel posts, with the workshop underneath.

 

slophome2

Building on a site of this nature will inevitably cause challenges, however the experience and expertise of the Traditional Queenslanders team enabled the clients to avoid excessive costs.

The buried rock was an unknown factor, but the clients accepted this in the knowledge that we would do our best to keep the cost to a minimum, while ensuring the finished product was structurally strong to deal with possible future cyclonic attack. It has since proved itself by enduring cyclone “Yasi”, without any concerns at all.

We are very proud of the result and our clients love their home.