134A Raglan Street

This project builds on the strong bones of a post war apartment block, while adapting the layout and facades to embrace a better connection with new external spaces which are important for apartment living. Rather than demolishing the many similar buildings in Mosman, this case study shows how they can be improved and retained, providing delightful and sustainable accommodation while preserving their embodied energy and cultural heritage.

Sustainability

This project is about adapting and improving a solid and well constructed apartment building so that the residences can provide better living spaces that can simply operate more sustainably. Working with the existing structure and materials we did as little as we needed to achieve as much as was required.

Innovative sustainable design elements:

Bringing the carparking from the garden to the building provided a platform for new external terraces, whcih are capped with a collective solar hot water heating system. Photo-voltaics were added to the existing roof and water tanks in the basement area to minimize the common area demands.

Environmental footprint of the building is minimised by:

This project demonstrates that it is really worthwhile to keep and adapt existing buildings like this, preserving their embodied energy and cultural values. The improved building envelope performance, indoor environment quality and water and energy systems noted above, ensure the environmental impact of the residences are minimised in the future.