The South Roncesvalles Laneway Suite is an 1,100 square foot 2-bedroom 1.5-bath rental unit located in the heart of Roncesvalles Village. Considering the building siting and context, this suite inverts the traditional interior configuration, placing bedrooms at grade and living space above. An open concept living area benefits from ample daylighting and passive heat gains offered by uninterrupted Southern exposure. The building is set back from a shared lot line to the East, avoiding injury to a mature healthy tree in the neighbouring yard while providing through access from the laneway to the garden. This configuration minimizes the impact of the new construction on existing lot features and ensures flexibility in how the site functions day-to-day.
To break out from a box-like appearance at the laneway, our team combined the utilitarian ground floor parallel parking setback with a slight building protrusion on one side to create a more dimensional staggered effect. Using a contrasting but classic material pairing of red brick and black fibre cement siding —this staggered effect was made more pronounced and melded this new build into its surrounding context.
The High Park LWS combines traditional materials, a modern form and an unconventional layout within a compact mass appropriate for the site. This laneway suite is a prime example of the opportunities for customization and tailoring that is possible in accessory dwellings.
