Like London buses, three reviews of the Houseboat have come along at the same time: unlike London, we haven’t had to wait long for the coverage to arrive. Maybe it’s something about the location?
Peter Smisek writes in Icon “The planners in Poole might have an obsession with protecting existing trees but, I’m told, they are quite permissive in all else. This means the town’s Victorian terraces and Edwardian semis are kept up not with that all-pervasive melancholy so typical of English seaside resorts, but with an almost cannibalistic hunger for modernisation. While this often results in bloated semis with newly replaced glass balustrades, uncharacteristically widened windows, and houses from all periods reclad in broad PVC planks – it can also occasionally enable original and delightful structures. Enter the Houseboat: a holiday retreat designed for architect-turned-developer guru Roger Zogolovitch by Meredith Bowles of Mole Architects.”
From the moment you step through the front door “The Houseboat feels far more spacious than its 255 sq m – another developer would have certainly crammed more floor area onto the site at the expense of the double- and triple-height spaces and multiplicity of aspects…” notes Jonathan Bell in Wallpaper. “Eclectic details reflect the client’s input into the design: glass tiles, a seaside mosaic and a custom balustrade that evokes the winding rope rails of traditional seaside homes”. However “This is a serious building, one shortlisted for the World Architecture Festival Future House Award (and RIBA Regional Award), but it’s also great fun to be in. Roger wanted to create a home that would produce a smile and he has certainly managed that. The Houseboat is a pleasure to walk around and being inside feels like an escape from mundane” comments Rich Cunningham in The Observer.
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