A futuristic Grand Designs-style home will be built on stilts despite fears it will \u201cstick out like a sore thumb\u201d in Kent\u2019s stunning countryside.<\/p>\n
Folkestone and Hythe District Council signed off Hawkes Architecture’s ambitious scheme despite warnings the ultra-modern house in Ivychurch would look out of place in the famously flat Romney Marsh.<\/p>\n
The bold design features large glass frontages, sustainable materials and \u201cenergy-saving technology\u201d. Picture: Hawkes Architecture<\/p>\n
The structure will feature sweeping glass frontages, sustainable materials and \u201cenergy-saving technology\u201d.<\/p>\n
Its lofty perch, five metres from the ground, will create parking and a garage beneath, along with secure cycle storage \u2013 and crucially, keep the living spaces clear of potential floodwater.<\/p>\n
With its medieval churches, weathered pubs and rare wildlife, the area is no stranger to planning battles.<\/p>\n
Strict council rules normally prevent new housing in open countryside, but national policy allows exceptions for \u201coutstanding or innovative\u201d designs that can be shown to raise architectural standards and meet high sustainability goals.<\/p>\n
Planning officers admitted the proposal off Wenhams Lane was unconventional for the setting.<\/p>\n
But with the nearest home more than 100 metres away, they concluded it would not infringe on anyone\u2019s privacy or block light \u2013 and could serve as \u201can excellent opportunity to regenerate the site\u201d and a benchmark for quality design.<\/p>\n
How the contemporary three-storey property on land near Ivychurch, Romney Marsh could look. Picture: Hawkes Architecture<\/p>\n
However, not everyone was convinced.<\/p>\n
Cllr John Goldsmith, of Ivychurch Parish Council, stated in the planning documents: \u201cWe had our parish meeting and the only concern we had about the new build is the height.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt looks as if the top storey of the building is over 10 metres high and will not only stick out like a sore thumb but also look directly over the surrounding land.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo the legs of the building have to be five metres high?\u201d<\/p>\n
Resident Julie Baile was equally blunt in written comments.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe 10-metre height of the proposed dwelling is too tall,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Some residents fear the designs are not in keeping with the area on the Romney Marsh. Picture: Hawkes Architecture<\/p>\n
\u201cThe building will be visually intrusive and will dominate the scenery as Romney Marsh is very flat.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause of the size of the dwelling, it looks as if it\u2019s a public building and so is out of keeping with the landscape.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Marsh\u2019s network of ditches and waterways means much of the land is at high risk of flooding in the future.<\/p>\n
The Environment Agency recommended the home have no bedrooms on the ground floor due to the danger.<\/p>\n
Cllr Mike Blakemore (Green) voiced worries about the long-term wisdom of building in such areas, saying: \u201cOne day will we look back on this and think \u2018what on earth were we thinking?\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not just tidal flooding \u2013 when the marsh came close to flooding last year it was due to rainfall.\u201d<\/p>\n
Martin’s Farm is located in Ivychurch on the Romney Marsh<\/p>\n
Despite that, he praised the project\u2019s eco-friendly elements and innovative look, but questioned whether it would truly \u201craise the quality of design elsewhere\u201d in the area.<\/p>\n
Others welcomed the scheme.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the planning committee meeting on Tuesday night, Cllr Adrian Lockwood (Lab) added: \u201cThat design of this nature is quite often controversial and quite a lot of people don\u2019t like it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s obviously modern, striking, a good use of the space and it\u2019s got good credentials in terms of its carbon footprint.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe revere buildings like the Grand on the Leas in Folkestone, but that was modern 130 years ago and I bet people moaned about it then.\u201d<\/p>\n
After debate, the committee voted to approve the application in line with officers\u2019 recommendations.<\/p>\n
Cllr Adrian Lockwood raised concerns over flooding, but praised the building design<\/p>\n
Following the decision, a spokesman from Hawkes Architecture, the firm behind the project, said: \u201cThe house is elevated in response to the unique environmental situation faced by all inhabitants of the Romney Marsh plain in that the entire area has been reclaimed through a combination of natural and man-made processes over centuries.<\/p>\n
\u201cRising sea levels require enhanced sea defences to keep this low-lying area clear, yet there is no real sense that this vast area is only kept clear by significant engineering interventions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhilst this site is within a distinctly flat open rural landscape, the new dwelling does sit adjacent to a farmhouse which once occupied the site.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe narrow and long site is well defined by its tree and boundary hedge cover, which stands in contrast to the general openness of the field network.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is not yet known when work will start.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A futuristic Grand Designs-style home will be built on stilts despite fears it will \u201cstick out like a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":86925,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[6225,6485,6486,1120,96,36757,192,191,4475,3863,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-86924","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-homes-news","tag-human-interest","tag-kent","tag-planning","tag-romney-marsh","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86924","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86924"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86924\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86924"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86924"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86924"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}