Can building a new home also help to build a stronger community?
What if the construction of your new home or renovation could actually bring you closer to your neighbours and create a stronger community? What would that mean for the future of your neighbourhood and your life in the area?
At Casa Connection, a street library and seat integrated into the front fence provide a place for neighbours to take a rest or swap a favourite read on their way past. The height of the front fence creates a semi-private outdoor space for children to play.
Subdivisions, new townhouses and unit developments have developed a bad reputation. At the extreme end, developments like this have been met with strong opposition and NIMBYism from the local community. Yet, even when people aren’t writing angrily-worded emails to council about a new development, they’re likely to shrug their shoulders and think, ‘this neighbourhood is changing for the worse.’
What if the opposite were possible? Where people were excited by a new development because of the way it engages with and benefits the wider community, rather than only lining the pockets of a greedy developer?
That’s what we wanted to achieve when designing our own new home. We wanted to find unique ways to build a stronger sense of community.
We knew the construction of our new home would mean the neighbourhood would become more densely populated and, with densification, the provision of public spaces becomes even more important.
So, we aimed to find ways of blurring the boundaries between private and public space and give something back to the community.
Our new home, dubbed Casa Connection, is being built in the backyard of our current home and is surrounded on two sides by a classic Melbourne bluestone laneway. Essentially three sides of the site open onto public space, so we saw this as the perfect opportunity to make both the original home and our new home engage with the neighbourhood and hopefully bring our neighbourhood closer together.
Opening sections of the fence at Casa Connection allow the home to connect to the laneway. This allows friends and neighbours to stop for a chat on their way past, or provides an easy way to keep an eye on the kids as they play in the laneway.
So, when you’re building or renovating, why not think up some fun ways to connect with your local community. The rewards of creating a stronger, more connected community are many. Good communities are safer, more social and more fun. Even if you take a completely cynical view, helping to create a neighbourhood that feels safe, connected and vibrant is bound to add dollars to your property value!
Here are some ways your new home or renovation could change your community for the better:
Orienting your kitchen or home office towards the street, so you feel more connected to your local community rather than retreating to the rear of your home
Integrated seating into your fence or boundary so an elderly neighbour can take a break during their daily lap of the block
A community or nature-strip garden to grow fresh herbs and vegetables, restore native vegetation, or grow colourful flowers to create a smorgasbord for the local bees
An interactive fence that has pop holes, large openings, or fins that can open/close so you can chat or wave to your neighbours as they pass by
A street library or box to share excess produce or sweet treats
Creating a place for native bees to thrive
Some public art created by you or a professional
Give your car parking space an alternate purpose; it could have a permeable surface to help with rainwater runoff an outdoor entertaining space or even a basketball court for your kids and the wider neighbourhood to enjoy
Or, depending on your site, you could even consider integrated public facilities like a café, co-working space or general store