Aimee and Peter came to us after acquiring a spacious old corner shop residence in Rozelle that had been well looked after, but with progressive alternations and additions had become a three storey dysfunctional warren.

What they loved about the place was that their growing family and business would have much more room to move, but they would need to first resolve the many conflicts with circulation and access that severely compromised the integrity of many of the spaces.

What PWA saw was a huge (for Rozelle) sandstone, heritage listed, verandah-clad corner shop that had bedrooms without windows, an uninhabitable attic on level 3 (due to a lack of insulation) and two massive front rooms on level 1 and 2 that nobody knew what to do with.

The solution at first seemed to be quite radical, but after a surgical intervention to the core of the house, everything fell into place. Looking at it now, it would be hard to see how it worked previously; the answer being that it simply didn’t.

The fundamental change was to completely re-organise the circulation. This meant reversing the existing stair and continuing it up into the attic space. This clearly defined the rooms that fed off it and moved the corridors away from the north wall where they had been taking up all the potentially available space for openings.

To reinforce this vertical access PWA suggested the insertion of a small dumbwaiter, which allowed for some dramatic role reversals. For a house with such high ceilings and so many level changes as it climbed the side of the hill, it proved itself to be more than worthwhile. Significantly, it allowed for a new kitchen/family room to occupy the old shop, with the entertainment /living /dining room located directly above with access to the large street verandahs and views to the city. Above this level was the new master bedroom and en-suite, also with city views, where you could read the paper and have a private breakfast delivered from far below by the silent waiter.