Mandalay Terrace (Project One)

This project was a three-level house, cut in and stepping down the bank on the hills of Khandallah over-looking Wellington Harbour. Not only was this property built on a steep site, it was also zoned as extreme wind zone and designed with the main living and kitchen area having a 4.2m clerestory which was all glass. All of these factors required complex engineering design with the structural steel having to be craned in. The building was constructed of a concrete foundation with three levels of block walls all which had to be tanked. Part of the ground floor slab was cantilevered over the garden and precast stilton beams had to be hi-abed into place. The clerestory was built out of steel and the floors in this area were 18mm T&G Victorian Ash floor boards. The roof was a low pitch 2 degree hip style which was covered with butynol over plywood which, though the finished product looked simple from a distance, was very complex especially with the clerestory popping through the main roof.

This site was very difficult to build on and required our team to be very organised with regards to timing and storage of materials. As an example, the Victorian Ash floor boards had to be ordered in well in advance and stored on site to acclimatise before being installed.

Steve and his team worked closely with the client and architects to achieve a top-quality finish. During all stages of work, Steve made sure all involved were kept up to date with a view to timing and minimising defects. The end result was a project that was delivered on time, on budget and importantly with happy clients.

“Having lived in a 70s house for 27 years, we were keen to build our dream home. We found the perfect section, appointed award winning architect’s Novak and Middleton, and hired Southcoast Construction to do the build. Our dream home turned out to have quite a few challenging architectural features, but Steve and the team took all that in their stride and we couldn’t be happier with the finished product. We have no hesitation recommending Southcoast to other home owners.” Neville and Alison Thorn