Mahana House duplexes

Ōtautahi Community Housing Trust (ŌCHT) provides homes for people and families experiencing acute housing needs. We designed and built six homes for the Trust in Christchurch, adapting our single-storey Mahana house design to two-storey, two-bedroom duplexes.

The Mahana concept promises healthy, robust, affordable and sustainable homes. These duplexes deliver with an engineered CLT mid-floor and insulated PIR roof panels, and high performance windows recessed into the insulation line. Balanced air ventilation with heat recovery keeps the homes warm and dry and running costs low. We used robust laminated wall linings and hard flooring to ensure that the homes are easy to clean, low allergen and will look good for years.

ŌCHT opted for brick cladding, which we designed with two tones to individualise the units, with patterning and relief details adding a high-end touch. The layout of the site optimises a typical suburban section for infill housing while providing for spaces between the buildings. A varied landscape treatment facing the street provides privacy for residents and enhances the streetscape.

This was a collaborative project from start to finish, with our team standing out for their positive approach, even through the uncertainties of the Covid-19 pandemic. We kept ŌCHT informed at every step and prioritised clear, frequent communication with our subcontractors and suppliers.

We are proud to have delivered exceptionally high-quality, certified Homestar 7 homes for the ŌCHT and their tenants.