ECOLOGICAL ARCHITECTURE
Feasibility Studies
Many projects need feasibility studies to test their ideas, especially those which are requiring some grant or community funding. We frequently work with community groups to help them develop their ideas and have carried out feasibility studies for several projects.
Tombreck Affordable Housing
This study was funded by the Scottish Rural Housing Fund on behalf of the Tombreck Action Group. The proposal is for new build houses with a high level of low carbon materials and high standards of energy conservation. The priorities are that the houses are affordable, sustainable and community owned. The houses would be for people in housing need already living on Tombreck farm, for new farmers starting self employed projects on the farm and local people in housing need.
The study looked at site locations on the farm, case studies, options for legal structures, affordability, and how to retain affordability, housing tenures, funding, design, materials, capital costs and procurement. We developed a design brief with the housing steering group, carried out a site options appraisal and a topographical survey.
The objective of the study was that it would enable the group to make informed decisions regarding the next steps to take. A Housing Co-op is currently in the process of being set up and the group are looking for funding for further design work.
Burrelton Village Hall
The existing village hall at Burrelton was built in the 1920's and had been used for a variety of community activities. However the hall was no longer fit for purpose and needed to be updated for a variety of reasons including lack of disability access, high heating costs and on-going problems with damp.
Previously, a high quotation had been received for work which included rewiring, a new heating system, an extension to provide a meeting room, and refurbished WC's, an accessible WC and entrance, insulation, re-roofing, an improved kitchen and extra storage. However, the Village Hall Committee felt that this substantial investment would not necessarily give the village the facilities it needed.
We were appointed to undertake a Feasibility Study to explore, in addition to a revised refurbishment programme for the existing hall, the possibility of demolishing it and providing a new hall on the same site.
Holmlea Gardens
The Holmlea Gardens Allotments Association manage 27 allotments in South Glasgow. We were appointed to undertake a Feasibility Study to explore options for demolishing two existing dilapidated portacabins, and constructing a purpose built facility to include a kitchen and community hall.
The design brief required the development of three design options on three different locations on the site. We also looked at examples of other buildings built for community use, including the Pishwanton Craft Workshop at Pishwanton Wood.