This striking home designed by MC Architecture Studio and built by Steve Brown Builders breaks the mould on seaside architecture and design in the coastal suburb of Sumner.

WORDS Kathy Catton PHOTOGRAPHY Clinton Lloyd Photography and Mick Stephenson

SHIELDED FROM THE ELEMENTS The StoArmour Façade provides superior protection from the coastal environment, and a sleek plaster finish to complement the contemporary home.

Beach homes have long been associated with traditional weatherboard materials and cute Kiwi ‘bach’ architecture. But this architect has reinvented the idea of a beachside dwelling with this stunning home on Sumner’s Esplanade in Christchurch.

A leaking and deteriorating home was the starting point for this homeowner to make a change.

“A repair would have been possible, but it would have been major and unpredictable in terms of cost. So, I elected to rebuild,” he says. Having bought the original property in 2002, he knew the location was right, but the earthquakes had taken their toll on the structure.

The location is second to none: across the road from the beach and a block away from the hustle and bustle of the village of Sumner with its shops, cafés and local amenities. The new building needed to do this site justice. In a sense, there was a need to set the bar high.

“There were a number of possibilities in terms of design,” says the homeowner. “In the end, I elected to proceed with a three-bedroom home combined with a separate one-bedroom flat above the existing garage at the back of the property.” This gave the homeowner options – a unit for friends to stay in or for short-term rental accommodation.

The homeowner gave his brief to Massimiliano (Max) Capocaccia of MC Architecture Studio. Renowned for being a great collaborator, Max is strongly influenced by European standards, processes and aesthetics. He takes his inspiration from sport and the natural environment – the ocean and the mountains in particular.

Max settled on a design that aimed to fragment the building, creating terraced decks at each level, including a spa area on the top floor. Each storey of the home allows the homeowner to enjoy the views of the ocean and surrounding hills.

LET'S TALK TIMBER XLam provided the prefabricated CLT (Cross Laminated Timber) panels on this statement home, which are renowned for their structural performance, sustainability and aesthetic appeal.

“This was a challenging brief and a challenging design,” says Max, stating that the coastal conditions of the area (within the Council’s flood management area) and the limited range of technology available to use on a build of this size made for a need to think outside the ordinary. The need for two dwellings on one site and garage space for four cars also made it complex.

For starters, the ground floor level of the home needed to be lifted several steps above the existing footpath level.

“In response to this, the entry to the home features a complex system of steps that softens the extra required floor height, creating an interesting journey through the limited space left on site,” says Max.

A timber skin with random widths and depths wraps around the two street frontages (Stoke Street and the Esplanade), offering protection from the openness of the corner site and the public gaze. “The composition of this timber skin has been approached like painting on a canvas where geometric shapes – like the windows and tile feature – are added and subtracted from it,” says Max.

The result is not one but two homes with enviable ocean views. Guests of the 50 square metre one-bedroom unit love that it has great views of Scarborough beach, despite the larger dwelling in front of it. “It is relatively small but very efficiently designed with good light and evening sun,” says the homeowner, of the one-bedroom unit.

Of course, that was not all easily achieved, with a large amount of engineering required. The mass timber technology was chosen to give strength to the three-storey home and not to give too much load to the foundation.

The house has also been designed for thermal comfort. It is well insulated to minimise the need for heating during the winter. It uses cross ventilation for cooling in the warmer summer days. The Cross Laminated Timber panels (CLT) have been insulated from the outside, providing thermal mass that will balance temperature variances. These solid timber panels also offer a high amount of acoustic insulation, creating a tranquil internal environment.

“It was important to strengthen the corner of the home with timber,” says Max. “In a sense, it marks the edge of the village and the start of the beach in a strong way.”

Indeed, the location deserves something spectacular. The homeowner is happy with the results, saying he was really pleased with Max’s great ideas and attention to detail.

The homeowner was equally pleased with the work of Steve Brown Builders, who built this 290 square metre double-home. This was the first job the team had carried out for an MC Architecture build, and since its completion in 2021, the team has gone on to work on other projects together with the architect.

Steve from Steve Brown Builders agrees that this was a challenging build.

“This was definitely a case of being adaptable and maintaining good consultation throughout the build,” says Steve. The system of the build materials – the structural steel and the large CLT panels – meant there was lots of tricky manoeuvring involved. “These CLT panels are large, so on a high-density living site, we needed to make sure there was room on site.”

TILES AND TIMBER Live House supplied solid oak floorboards from Poland with a 10 mm wear layer and unique bottom incision technology certified for heated floors.

Thanks to his consistent and steady team, the public saw a tidy site, and the homeowner was happy with the ease of communication with Steve. “He’s incredibly experienced and very fair, and great to deal with,” says the homeowner. “He demands a high standard of workmanship, and his team had the expertise to deliver this. I am very happy with the build quality.”

Steve also rated the homeowner and architect highly, saying, “The homeowner listened to our advice and had faith in us as the builder and architect team. He was a pleasure to have as a client. And it’s been great working with Max on subsequent projects.”

As a local to Sumner himself, Steve was acutely aware of the impact on local residents as they moved around the village during the build. He made sure to leave a tidy site at the end of each day’s work. “The team remained consistent throughout this job – which is a rarity these days,” says Steve. “I am also lucky enough to have a very conscientious foreman, so I knew the job would be done to the highest standard.”

The internal stairwell is a dominant feature throughout the house, connecting the three floors together from one vertical thoroughfare. The lower floor stairwell is framed by an oak ceiling feature which draws the visitor upwards to the main living area. At the same time, the upper stairs have fragmented views through to the hills and across the ocean.

The main living level is fully open plan with a studio nook to the south, allowing unobstructed views of the ocean from the living, dining and kitchen. Several timber features with different timber species and detailing are also used here to define the different uses of spaces within this floor.

This home strives to set new standards in aesthetics while meeting all the demands of coastal living.

The section, by definition, was going to be challenging. But what has been created here is a unique contemporary beachside home that uses innovative materials to protect it from the elements of coastal living. With spectacular views, this is certainly a place to gather and marvel at the views while enjoying the sun, surf or shade.