RAVINE HOUSE

This project in Toronto’s High Park district involved the demolition of a small turn-of-the-century house and the construction of a new, larger, more contemporary home.

The clients, a conservative couple with young children, did not want their house to “stand out” from their neighbours’ and specifically requested that it “blend in” with their suburban community.

Placed adjacent to two parks, one to the north (beside the house) and one to the east (across the street), the house’s stone and wood natural material palette was derived from those materials which are naturally found within the parks.

Conceptually, the house’s facades and roof express two different architectural languages: the street side of the house (traditional, private and closed) and the backyard side of the house (modern, public and open). To contrast the differences between the house’s front and back, we blended an Arts and Crafts inspired front facade with a tapering roof that transitions to a low modern roof, at the property’s backyard.

Other architectural features include a low wood storage wall at the side of the house for gardening tools and a low stone wall at the front of the house, complete with an outdoor terrace, which provides a semi-private exterior porch, just beyond the dining room.

LOCATION: Toronto, Ontario

ARCHITECT: LINEVISION Architects

DESIGN LEADERSHIP: Michael Poitras,
Principal-in-Charge of Design

CLIENT: Withheld

STATISTICS:

• No. of storeys: 2
  (with finished basement & finished attic space)
• Total floor area:
  3,200 ft2 (300 m2)

MATERIALS:

• Dry-stacked stone + landscape walls
• Vertical tongue & groove cedar siding
• White pre-finished metal soffits
• Spanish cedar wood windows & doors
• Asphalt shingle roof (grey)

GENERAL PROGRAM:

• Open concept living/dining/kitchen
• Master bedroom + ensuite
• 2 bedrooms
• 3 washrooms
• Guest bedroom/office
  (attic space)
• Guest bedroom/family room
  (basement)
• 3 fireplaces

COST: Withheld

COMPLETION: Project