Design guide · Carlow County Council
Rural Design Guide (County Development Plan, chapter 13)
The council's guidance on siting and designing a house in the countryside.
Carlow County Council · 24 pages
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- Rural Design Guide Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 305 | P a g e Chapter 13 Rural Design Guide 13.0 Introduction In County Carlow there is a tradition of people residing in the countryside. Therefore, while the strategic objective of the Council is to accommodate growth in a network of vibrant towns and villages, it is equally recognised that a smaller proportion of the future growth in the County will be accommodated in the countryside in accordance with policies as contained in Chapters 2 and 3 of this Plan. Development proposals for rural houses in the countryside require careful and detailed consideration in relation to site selection, site layout, and house design, so that they complement rather than dominate the rural landscape. This chapter outlines the key guiding principles which should inform proposals for new builds, or renovations and extensions to existing rural houses in the countryside. 13.1 Strategy This rural design guide is not intended to be prescriptive but will be used by the Planning Department as an advisory document in the consideration of future planning applications. Each development proposals will be considered having regard to site location and characteristics of the local rural area and will be considered on a case by case basis. The guide it seeks to encourage imaginative and innovative contemporary design as well as more traditional vernacular solutions, which complement their rural surroundings. It is intended to be utilised as a tool to assist potential applicants, architects and planning agents, particularly in the areas of site selection, layout, design, and sustainable building. Within the countryside new rural houses, together with extension, renovation and conversion projects, should: ▪ Be a positive addition to the rural environment and community; ▪ Reflect location and contribute to the character of the area by acknowledging the local built heritage and using local materials; ▪ Embrace contemporary rural living and lifestyle as an alternative to the suburban style of many new homes in the open countryside; ▪ Be timeless and capable of adaptation; ▪ Be durable and built of materials which improve with age and which are well detailed; ▪ Respect, learn and interpret from the past to achieve well designed architecture, be it in a contemporary or traditional style; and, ▪ Be sustainable, incorporating design features/principles to facilitate a transition Aim: To encourage appropriate site selection, layout, and highquality design for rural housing in the countryside, by utilising guiding principles to ensure that rural housing complements, reinforces, and preserves the character and visual amenity of the County’s rural landscape, while also being cognisant of the need to transition to a low carbon climate resilient future.
- Rural Design Guide 306 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 to a low carbon climate resilient future. The rural design guide should also be read in conjunction with other relevant chapters in this Plan, in particular: ▪ Chapter 3 (Rural Housing Policy); ▪ Chapter 5 and 16 (Traffic Safety); ▪ Chapter 6 (On-site wastewater treatment and flood risk assessment); ▪ Chapter 9 (Landscape character, sensitivity and capacity, and scenic views and routes); and, ▪ Chapter 10 (Natural and Built Heritage). Rural Design - Policy It is the policy of the Council to: RD P1: Ensure that rural housing in the countryside is appropriately located in the landscape, informed by best practice principles for siting, layout, design, scale, form, orientation, use of materials, energy efficiency and climate adaptation, thereby contributing to the preservation of the rural environment. 13.2 Site Selection The development of rural housing in the countryside has tended to focus on the use of road frontage sites, often carved out of larger fields. Here buildings dominate the view, where existing roadside trees and hedgerows are removed, and new inappropriate suburban type gardens, boundary walls and gates are introduced into the landscape. Such development changes the character of the countryside and, when repeated, leads to ribbon development and a loss of the rural character of an area. All new development will be required to be sited in such a way that allows it to blend into the rural landscape and not form an overly visible or obtrusive feature. A good site will be one that already has a significant number of well-established features that naturally define its extents/boundaries. Fig. 13.1 Avoid corner sites located on dangerous bends with poor sight lines. Fig. 13.2 Avoid open and exposed sites limited or no existing boundaries. Houses located in the middle of sites/fields, distant from boundaries will not be considered acceptable. Houses should be ‘tucked into’ the landscape close to existing landscape features such as field boundaries, trees, and hedgerows.
- Rural Design Guide 307 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Fig. 13.3 Avoid sites which lead to or exacerbate ribbon development. Fig. 13.4 Houses positioned parallel to public roads in the form of linear/ribbon development will, irrespective of site analysis and desirable orientation, lead to a loss of rural character. Key Principles Site Selection ▪ Seek to reuse/adapt or extend existing structures where possible. ▪ Select a site that is visually enclosed with established trees and hedgerow boundaries. Prominent sites which are elevated, open, and exposed should be avoided. ▪ Consider the openness and visibility of the site in the surrounding landscape, the sensitivity or vulnerability of the landscape to new development and the existence of protected views or routes in the area. ▪ Consider individual site constraints e.g. landscape sensitivity, heritage features (nature conservation designations, archaeology or built heritage), flood risk considerations etc. ▪ Avoid areas of the countryside which are less able to absorb development without significant impact upon the character, integrity and uniformity of the landscape. ▪ Cognisance must be had of potential impacts on existing proximate dwellings, particularly overlooking and overshadowing. ▪ Avoid sites that will contribute to overdevelopment of a rural area e.g. exacerbate or give rise to ribbon development. ▪ Avoid choosing sites which are carved out of larger fields. ▪ Choose a site with adequate entrance sight lines to facilitate safe access, and appropriate ground conditions to accommodate an on-site wastewater treatment system.
- Rural Design Guide 308 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 13.3 Site Analysis and Layout Site analysis is a record of all the data of the site and its context. A good site analysis will lead to an appropriate site layout and ensure that the proposed house can be absorbed more naturally into the landscape. The design of the house should therefore be site specific and evolve from a study of the location, its orientation and topography. Site-specific information which needs to be considered includes: ▪ Orientation: This will enable the design to take full advantage of the southerly aspect and it’s potential for solar gain. This is a key consideration when designing using passive techniques for sustainable design solutions. ▪ Aspect: This is defined as the direction of the slope of a site direction. An understanding of aspect will facilitate optimising the use of south light in a design. It will be important to note any topography, building or landscape feature that might screen daylight on any part of the site, at a given time in the day or at a particular time of the year. ▪ Topography: New houses should be designed to harmonise and work with existing contours avoiding hilltop locations or dramatic cutting and filling into hills which can leave a scarred landscape. Use lower areas and contours to screen the development ▪ Existing Buildings and Materials: May provide important contributions to the character of the area. New design proposals should be respectful of the scale, form, massing and detailing set by existing vernacular structures e.g. houses, farm buildings, stone walls etc. ▪ Existing Landscape Features: Characteristics unique to the site should be carefully considered in order to inform and influence the design of a development e.g. topography, ground levels etc. ▪ Boundary Treatments: Existing established boundary treatments e.g. old stone walls, hedgerows, trees and sod banks contribute significantly to the character of the rural environment and should where possible be retained in the development of rural houses in the countryside. ▪ Prevailing Wind Direction: Can be an important consideration in designing an energy efficient dwelling and providing shelter from the elements. Key Principles Site Layout ▪ Position buildings along the contours of the site. Blend sympathetically with the topography and avoid breaking the skyline. ▪ Avoid buildings on prominent hillside locations or on ridges. ▪ Don’t artificially alter the natural levels of the site. Avoid excessive cutting and filling i.e. locating housing on ‘platforms’. ▪ Use or retain existing trees, buildings, slopes and other natural features to provide a setting. An exposed site will result in greater heat loss and likely incur more maintenance costs. ▪ Minimise impacts on historic elements in the landscape that can be impacted by a proposed new development. ▪ Site the building to exploit passive solar gain and shelter from the prevailing winds. ▪ Avoid sites which may impact on elevated and sensitive landscapes, scenic views, or
- Rural Design Guide 309 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 detract from the visual appearance of the countryside. ▪ Assess and quantify the existing boundary conditions. Determine the value of the boundary elements before deciding to remove any of them. Removing parts of the existing boundary runs the risk of fundamentally changing the character of the rural area. Fig. 13.5 Sample Site Analysis Fig. 13.6 Avoid elevated, unsheltered, and exposed sites. Houses should not be above the ridge line or positioned to break the skyline or to appear highly visible or dominant in the landscape. Fig. 13.7 A more appropriate approach is to site house on lower, more sheltered and less visually exposed ground.
- Rural Design Guide 310 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Fig. 13.8 Avoid excessive cutting and filling on sloping sites. This can leave landscape scarred and give impression house has been “dropped into” an area. Fig. 13.9 Reduce cutting and filling in sloping sites by making floor levels work with existing topography and contours. 13.4 House Design The success of new houses in the countryside is measured by: ▪ How well new buildings reflect advanced technology and modern lifestyles; and, ▪ How the architecture of the proposed building responds to its environment and local heritage. While it is the aim of this chapter to promote innovation through design that is both contemporary and timeless, it is important that architecture respects and acknowledges the characteristics that contribute to the rural character of Carlow. The following sections will examine such issues as scale, height, form and shape, proportion, massing, fenestration and detailing. 13.4.1 General Guidance There are a number of considerations that should form part of the design process for an appropriate proposal for rural housing, including: ▪ The ability of the surrounding landscape to absorb development. This will inform the building type that is appropriate to the sites’ context. ▪ The proposal must respond appropriately to the site. It should retain and work with the existing features of the site. ▪ An awareness of the colloquial style of development for the area. It should be noted however that there may be examples of development locally that could be more appropriately designed and may not be an appropriate precedent. ▪ Designs should be site specific and avoid replication of a generic “pattern book” design. ▪ Proposals should be “of their time”. A contemporary approach in style is more appropriate, or a modern interpretation of traditional characteristics rather than an imitation of an historic style. ▪ The forms used for a development should be simple. There should be a clear hierarchy, with the main dwelling form being the dominant one. 13.4.2 Scale and Height A building’s size should be relative to its surroundings. As a result of modern demands for larger houses and building regulations which require higher ceiling height, rural houses have become larger in scale. While there is no prescribed height restriction for rural dwellings sufficient care must be taken in mitigating the impact larger scale dwellings which may appear out of context with surrounding traditional buildings and with the wider landscape. A large house will require a large site and needs to be set within a ‘large landscape’. An area characterised by small field patterns and low-level vegetation is
- Rural Design Guide 311 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 unlikely to be suitable for a large house which will dominate the area. Fig. 13.10 Large house out of scale on a small site In some cases, particularly on uplands, hills, ridges and on slopes, the visual sensitivity of a landscape may only allow for a single storey house. 13.4.3 Form and Shape Building forms are most appropriate by kept simple and not finished in overly ornate or fussy detailing, or inappropriate fenestration. New houses, especially in the more sensitive landscape areas, should try to replicate simple traditional forms and shapes, particularly imitating the narrow house plan. As a general rule deep plan houses should be avoided where possible. Long, central corridors running down the spine of a building with a room either side and no natural light are not an ideal solution. The form and shape of such dwellings can often lead to substantial roof structures and dark internal spaces. They often fail to recognise the opportunities in terms of optimising natural light and passive solar gain. There should be an obvious hierarchy to the general forms of a house, and the composition should not be such that the building looks unbalanced when considered in the context of its site. Fig. 13.11 – Small courtyard (OLS Architects – Tullow Passive House) illustrating a series of narrow plan forms, echoing the principles of the traditional small courtyard farmyard Fig. 13.12 – Simple forms are used to reflect typical rural cottage vernacular with a contemporary interpretation and to a higher standard such as this passive house example. (Tigh na Croit by HLM Architects) Principles - Key Principles Scale, Height, Form and Shape ▪ Most appropriate designs comprise buildings which are simple in form. ▪ Aim to get the form right and avoid one bulky structure. ▪ The rural nature of the site should inform the design concepts. ▪ Ensure that the house design is of an appropriate scale relative to the site. ▪ Ensure that the scale and height of the building is appropriate to the existing character and buildings of the locality. ▪ Ensure that the height of the building does not lead to obtrusive visual impacts in the local landscape. ▪ Design detailing should be restrained and absent of fussy add-ons or frills.
- Rural Design Guide 312 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 ▪ Traditional rural houses have little or no modelling to the front plane of the building. ▪ Use quality local materials that are well detailed. ▪ Use simple construction techniques. ▪ Avoid suburban type forms and shapes. ▪ Avoid buildings which are complex in shape. Fig. 13.13 Examples of appropriate house building forms in the countryside e.g. narrow plan, low eaves, modest scale, flat fronted, and vertical emphasis to gables.
- Rural Design Guide 313 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Fig. 13.14 Avoid house forms that are alien to the countryside e.g. suburban in character, awkward scales, wide gables, complex shapes, and busy roof profiles and wall elevations. 13.4.4 Proportion Traditional rural houses maintained a balance of proportions between the walls, and window and door openings. This was achieved in a number of ways, including: ▪ A high solid-to-void relationship i.e. greater wall surface than windows and doors; ▪ A simple symmetrical arrangement of features; ▪ Height of a building relative to its openings; and, ▪ Window openings with a vertical emphasis. This balance and symmetry can be distorted through the use of larger horizontal emphasis windows that reverse the solid-to-void relationship. It can result in a structure that appears more unbalanced, and which lacks the simplicity and strength of traditional buildings. A comprehensive proportioning system should be applied to contemporary rural houses to ensure that they relate to their surroundings. Fig. 13.15 Traditional house maintains a balance of proportions.
Source Carlow County Council: Rural Design Guide (County Development Plan, chapter 13) · Licence the publisher's termsText read from the publisher’s PDF; tables, maps and drawings do not survive as text, and page numbers are the PDF’s (its first page is 1). Check the original before relying on a passage.