‘Invisible house’ to be built on site of disused garages

A projection of what the house will look like. Pic JaK Studio

A projection of what the house will look like Pic: JaK Studio

London’s first “invisible house” is to be built in Brockley, replacing two disused garages.

Lewisham Council has granted planning permission for the building in Manor Avenue, which will use mirrors to help the house to blend in with the leafy surroundings.  It will also have a rooftop terrace overlooking the street.  The planners had rejected several other designs for the site other the past two years for not fitting in with the architecture in the area.

The building was originally bought for £9,000 and the completed house is expected to be worth £650,000.

Owner Kevin Morton said: “We’d been trying to build a house in Lewisham and on this particular plot of land for a long time but given the complications faced, we were really unsure whether this would even become a reality.

“We can now start building a house that is completely different to any of the houses in the surrounding area, or even in London itself.”

Futuristic design for this 'invisible' eco-home. Pic JaK Studio

Futuristic design for this ‘invisible’ eco-home Pic: JaK Studio

The home has been designed to be eco-friendly and to minimise energy use.  It has an insulation system that means house will not need heating for the majority of the year.

Architect Jacob Low, founding partner at firm JaK Studio who designed the building said: “This project has certainly been an exercise in perseverance and represents a process full of dialogue with my clients, Lewisham planning department and various specialist consultants.

“As a practice we are proud to have at last won planning on such a constrained site with a bold proposal we believe is a truly unique solution in both conceptual and planning terms.”

Work is planned to start this summer and should finish in spring 2015.

The JaK Studio project here.

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