Credits
From Atlanta Design Festival
A clean, modern, infill. Rock Springs project has transformed a once-blighted lot in Atlanta’s Piedmont Heights neighbourhood into a dynamic home for a young, growing family.
Open and modern, space flows through sophisticated, layered architectural planes with a two story living room at its heart. The monumental fireplace wall is articulated as thick and sculptural with deep set windows.
A second story “perch” set within this two story space provides an elevated, cozy corner overlooking the fireplace, front yard and community beyond.
The kitchen & keeping area at the rear of the house is set up for informal family living. A clean “barn door” of millwork panels opens or separates the kitchen from the formal dining area.
An aggressive budget was met with a cost effective skin comprised of a low cost fiber cement panel rain screen system combined with an innovative synthetic recycled wood siding (one of the first uses of this product in Atlanta).
The siding is certified for Class 1 durability against fungal decay. The simple “T” footprint is simple and low cost. The triple cantilever at the “perch” dramatically reflects the two story living space and is a structural feat executed solely with wood framing (no steel).
The simple, single plane TPO roof gathers all roof rainwater to a single point to be piped to the dry well storm water leaching system; not a drop is wasted. A highly reflective, white roof membrane reflects rather than absorbs solar heat and energy.
The tight house tested well below code maximums for air infiltration, letting the high SEER HVAC systems sip, rather than gulp, energy to provide heating & cooling.
Significant trees were preserved. Careful siting of the house maintained existing topography and drainage patterns. The attention to siting also sets the house back on the lot so that the modern architectural language sits quietly among its pitched roof neighbors.
The exterior features low-maintenance and sustainable, durable fiber cement panels with caulk-free aluminum trim that features 70% recycled materials. Weather resistant clad windows drive energy efficiency.
This property is part of the Atlanta Design Festival MA! Architecture Tour 2017™