Carron Den, Stonehaven 2014
Originating from an Aberdeenshire Council policy forum in 2005, the proposals for 109 houses have finally been realised. Churchill Homes and Stewart Milne Homes have taken up the mantle of unusual topographic conditions to build the grid layout and close-knit architecture which stems from a response to historic streets in Stonehaven and the dramatic coastal landscape. The design builds on the plateau edge landform to create a distinct residential environment that is both sheltering and outward looking. It creates a community-oriented street environment and parkland integrated into the adjoining valley landscape and woodland. The response is inspired by the way in which the adjoining churchyard at Dunnottar creates a sheltered enclosure in similar topographic conditions. And it is informed by the grid in the townscape of nineteenth century Stonehaven with its homogenous, layered and textured street fronts; with its open ended streets.
This infill development completes the urban envelope of the town defined by the A90, navigating the steep topography to transform access into the surrounding landscape for new and existing communities.
Other highlights:
- A dense grain of housing based on a contemporary re-interpretation of rural courtyard clusters.
- The linking of houses and plot boundaries to form well-defined streets and spaces.
- Solar orientation of houses, living rooms and gardens.
- Car parking integral with the architecture and streetscape.
- A palette of materials derived from local colours, rock and beaches.
