Down Under
[Image: The subterranean granny flat of the future, via the Sydney Morning Herald].According to an article published last month in the Sydney Morning Herald, turning backyard swimming pools into subterranean "granny flats" is a spatially innovative, if unexpected, way to assuage Sydney's growing housing shortage. Indeed, much of Sydney's projected population growth could simply be "housed within some of [New South Wales's] 360,000 swimming pools." These "redeveloped pools" could then be used as detached bedrooms for grandparents, teens, guests, bunker enthusiasts, underground-obsessed schizophrenics, and so on.
The regions 360,000 swimming pools would first be emptied of their water and then transformed, through architectural intervention, into a comfortable domestic space, "complete with a small bedroom, living room, kitchen, bathroom, garden alcove and rooftop windows."
But where would everyone then swim? In the ocean pools of Sydney, of course.
(Thanks to Simon Sellars for the tip!)
Comments are moderated.
If it's not spam, it will appear here shortly!
Hi Geoff
This a project by Nobbs Radford - an excellent young practice in Sydney. It was presented as part of a talk on ways of dealing with Sydney's Suburbs.
Sounds like a good idea to me!
Where will everybody swim? Well...there's a drought here at the moment so there's no water to put in the pools anyway!
Reading "Granny Home" and "underground" made me think how the idea clashes with ancient burial chambers for remarkable people (say in egypt)is also an interesting way.
I wonder if this is also a statement in the direction of disregarding the elderly and wise in a decent, yet not so up-close-and-personal method? Does make me worry, both about my line of thinking and if that's really been taken into consideration.
"Make your pool into something more usable, like a mausoleum for an example. Open it up for more than your own family and get tax deductions. An entire generation of people buried in their loved ones backyards, where all the fun is at. Plus, you don't have to dig, just fill up what's already been dug."
I do love BLDG BLOG though, just recently got back to reading, keep it up! =]
Oh dear, it's a bit Fritzel-esque for me.
But if you ever go out to eat you've got to wait half an hour before you can even think about going home.
The aerial views of the ocean pools of Sydney reminded me of this.
Google Maps: 10°11'57.09"N 106°39'58.78"E
I'm assuming this is some kind of aquaculture?
Wonderful idea! It'd be perfect for all those wanting to live in "hobbit" holes too. :)
Well, it's not a BAD idea... LOL. You would expect only those who didn't value their pools very much to convert them, and there would probably be a few. There are some right of way issues.
Thankfully, many would keep their pools. You can't play silent marco polo, a very sophisticated game, in an ocean pool there.
That's such a great proposal - very witty. It'll be interesting to see the spatial conditions of the built structure.
Post a Comment