Max and Katie had already made a huge effort to retain original features on the main house, reusing windows, roof tiles and other materials, but despite their impeccable track record, the local authority twice refused them permission to temporarily take down the rear boundary wall.
“The conservation officer, planning officer, and local conservation groups were all against it, so I requested permission for our application to be taken to committee,” explains Max, who was assisted by a local town councillor. “We then visited every household in the vicinity to show people our drawings and asked if they would be willing to help us.”
Over 70 residents wrote letters of support for the couple’s proposal and – after Max had spoken at the committee meeting – the 27 members voted unanimously in favour of the application.
“The delay meant putting everything on hold, and a further nine-month wait to reassemble the team,” says Max. “We also needed a breather before starting on site in May 2019, working with subcontractors we already knew and project managing the build ourselves.”
PREPARATORY WORKS
Dismantling the old boundary wall and then carefully cleaning and stacking bricks – including the darker over-fired clinker bricks – was a process which involved five people, in addition to Katie and Max.
Rather than breaking up the existing slab for groundworks, this was cut around to create footings – a procedure further complicated
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by the discovery of a huge water catchment well on site.
“It’s a magnificent feat of engineering, with a gravity-fed system of pipework to draw water for irrigation, and when we lifted the lid the water inside was crystal clear,” says Max. “Preserving the well involved installing a pump system and hatch so that we can use the water for plants.” Foundations needed to bridge the well at one corner, which meant hand-digging five-metre- deep holes and installing shuttering and steelwork. Cellar space in the main house dictated that the adjacent strip footings also needed to be extremely deep.
“During the dig, we came across a huge pipe which nobody was willing to lay claim to, so the structural engineer and building control officer came up with a scheme to bridge and protect this,” says Max. “Even to this day we don’t know where it goes or what it serves.” Working on such a tight site meant that storing materials and plants was an issue, involving constantly shuffling and moving items. This also restricted the quantity of materials which could be ordered and required a structured programme of deliveries to avoid obstructing the road and footpath, where permission was granted to create a dropped curb.
“We kept up dialogue with all the residents, who were going to be our neighbours, and made sure they knew exactly what would be going on,” says Katie. “One poor lady moved into her new flat to the roar of a petrol disc cutter breaking the ground, but she was extremely tolerant about the whole thing.”
nov/dec 2020
HANDS-ON
Max and Katie took a hands-on role throughout the project
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