PC Channel Islands

Recognising hard work: BAS Mooarc makes the list

BAS Mooarc Guernsey Design Awards

As an award-wining design practice, BAS Mooarc is committed to making the Channel Islands an interesting and diverse place to live. The practice’s extensive portfolio clearly demonstrates a commitment to architectural excellence through innovative and imaginative design, and it seems that all of this hard work has paid off.

Three of BAS Mooarc’s projects – Le Portelet, Etoile du Nord and Les Bardeaux – have been shortlisted at the Guernsey Design Awards 2012.

BAS Mooarc Design Director, Jamie Falla, said:

“This marks a new era for contemporary architecture in Guernsey. We’ve worked very hard over the last ten years, so it’s a privilege to be shortlisted for three of our recent projects.

“There is a huge amount of respect for what we are doing and for us this is the culmination of where we are going in the future. It is also a reflection of the good quality clients and builders that we work with and that’s something that is very important to us.”

Etoile Du Nord, Guernsey by MOOARC

BAS Mooarc Project Architect, Caroline Shortt, added:

“It is a real honour to be recognised for the quality of our designs. We fight hard for our buildings and we are always trying to push the boundaries of design and sustainability.

“We’re very happy that the residents of Guernsey appreciate what we’re doing.”

Le Portelet

Nestled into a hillside overlooking Portelet Harbour, Le Portelet is a comfortable and modern family home that replaces a bungalow that previously existed on the site. Le Portelet sits comfortably into the landscape and makes use of the surrounding wooded area, in the process reducing the building’s visual impact on the landscape.

One of the most striking features is the glazing, which really allows the building to take advantage of the wonderful views. Additional features include under floor heating, solar thermal panels on the roof and a ventilation system that reduces the loss of heat from the building.

BAS Mooarc Guernsey Design Awards

Le Portelet was built to comply with 2016 Building Regulations and Code for Sustainable Homes Level 5, therefore construction materials were carefully selected in order to reduce the carbon footprint. All of the materials were sourced from a sustainable forest and include prefabricated laminated timber panels and Sweet-Chestnut external cladding.

The ground works contractors for Le Portelet were Geomarine Ltd and Ravenscroft Construction Ltd. The structural engineer was Dorey Lyle & Ashman, whilst the mechanical and electrical engineer was 4-Star.

Nicky Burridge of NB Lighting Design was the lighting designer, whilst Sensible Home Technologies provided control systems for lighting and heating. External landscaping work was conducted by Guernsey Gardens and Ravenscroft Construction Ltd.

Caroline Shortt said:

“Le Portelet was very much a talking point for islanders during construction, so we made sure that the building blended in with the existing landscape. This worked well and since completing the project the local residents have really embraced Le Portelet.”

Jamie Falla added:

“We care about Guernsey and we continue to make sure that we are putting buildings into the community that we can all be proud of. The materials we used softened the building and this helped us to please the client and the general public when it came to making it part of the landscape.”

Etoile du Nord

Etoile Du Nord, Guernsey by MOOARC

The brief for Etoile du Nord was to remodel an existing bungalow that overlooks Vazon Bay in order to take advantage of the stunning views.

Etoile du Nord was built to comply with the latest building regulations and all of the new elements of the building were designed to reduce energy consumption. Upgrades were made to the existing structure and then an additional glass rooftop pavilion was built above with double-height glass sculpted around the former structure.

Locally sourced reconstituted stone was used to anchor the building and help it blend into the hillside.

BAS Mooarc Guernsey Design Awards

Additional features include roof lighting, control systems for heating, ventilation and an external terrace.

Main contractor for the Etoile du Nord project was Joe Moriarty & Sons Ltd, whilst the mechanical and electrical consultant was Guernsey Electricity. Nicky Burridge of NB Lighting Design was the lighting designer and Guernsey Gardens conducted the landscaping work.

Caroline Shortt said:

“The concept of Etoile du Nord was to create a building that could really take advantage of the truly spectacular view that overlooks Vazon Bay.

“In the original bungalow the best view that the building could offer came from the utility room so the brief was to make better use of the structure.

“In order to do this we incorporated a lot of glass. The glazing was specifically designed so that no matter where you are in the building, you’re always drawn back to the view. That’s what makes this project so special.”

Les Bardeaux 

Les Bardeaux is a four-bedroom open-plan family home that is set within a small woodland area on the south coast of Guernsey. The design of the building draws upon the local architecture and out of all three of BAS Mooarc’s shortlisted projects it is the most traditional in terms of design and construction.

Les Bardeaux was built to comply with 2016 Building Regulations and Code for Sustainable Homes Level 5 and features high levels of insulation, timber cladding and blockwork walls.

Additional features include polished concrete floors, an air source heat pump and a pitched roof.

As none of the internal partitions on Les Bardeaux are load-bearing, the design of the building also allows for future alterations if necessary.

Main contractor for the Les Bardeaux project was Mark Le Prevost and the structural engineer was Dorey Lyle & Ashman. Nicky Burridge of NB Lighting Design was once again the lighting designer on the project.

Jamie Falla said:

“Out of all three projects that have been shortlisted for the Guernsey Design Awards, Les Bardeaux is a much softer and more traditional approach to Guernsey architecture and people have really seemed to warm to it.

“We’ve created open-plan spaces inside the building so that the building can continue to adapt to changes in people’s lifestyles and this is a perfect example of a building design that will last a lifetime.”

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