MeyerHouse
Project Details
Project Name: MeyerHouse
Development Company Name: Secure Venture Development (No.1) Pte Ltd
Joint-Venture Partnerships: UOL Group Limited & Kheng Leong Co. (Pte.) Ltd.
Architect: WOHA Architects
Main Contractor: Unison Construction Pte Ltd
CONQUAS Score: N.A.
Location: Rest of Central Region
Total Gross Floor Area (sqft): 168829
Number of Residential Units: 56
Type of Area: Strata
Description of Project: MeyerHouse is a 56-unit freehold development located on a large 1-hectare plot adjacent to a large public park within a landed housing zone. The development embodies luxury living, giving every residence views of the lush internal gardens that spill out onto an adjacent park and cascade down to a lower water courtyard where a refreshing arrival experience unfolds. Recognising the importance of privacy and exclusivity, it is the first in Singapore to give each unit a dedicated lift and lobby from the private carpark lots to the apartment. The landscape recalls the charming gardens and rolling hills of the English countryside while the interior integrates the appreciation for nature with contemporary comforts and traditional craftsmanship.
Official Project Website: https://www.themeyerhouse.com.sg/
URL for Virtual Tour: N.A.
Completion Status: Completed Project (TOP)
Unit Allocation
Property Category: Condominium / Apartment
3 Bedrooms: 10
4 Bedrooms: 40
5 Bedrooms or more: 6
Images
Video
Landscape Excellence
Landscape Aesthetic Values: Ramboll Studio Dreiseitl’s sculptured landscape of crisp cut hedges, soft grasses and flowering shrubs recalls the charming gardens and rolling hills of the English countryside. Nature unfolds in different shades and textures of green, dotted with splashes of colourful blossoms.
Paths slide across gently undulating terrain from one delightful discovery to the next – a quiet reading room, a secret tunnel, a shallow pool. Some parts designed for play, others for residents to hide away.
Taking advantage of the adjacent neighbourhood park and large internal communal garden, “borrowed greenery” from these areas give units extensive lush views out. Upper and lower floors are designed with different visual focus. Upper floors focus on the centre of the communal garden while lower floors focus on the outer zone of the communal garden.
The landscape comprises a comprehensive kit of parts of landscape elements to address different spatial and visual conditions. A clear logic for interventions were then derived and applied to different conditions.
Aesthetically, the soft cottage garden was realised with sculptural formal hedges, soft shrubs and colour highlights to ground covers.
As a nod to the heritage of the site, the Eucalyptus Deglupta with its rainbow coloured trunk is planted as the signature tree for the development. Besides being designated as Katong Park’s Heritage Tree, its rainbow coloured trunks create visual interest in the garden.
Social & Cultural Values: To create a holistic environment for MeyerHouse, the developers took it upon themselves to upgrade and beautify the public park- Meyer Road Playground- adjacent to the development.
Meyer Road Playground consists of a playground, fitness equipment and a pavilion. It not only serves as a landmark in the neighbourhood of low rise landed housing, it is also a gathering spot for the community and helps to promote social bonds in the neighbourhood.
The neighbouring preschool also frequent the park as a break out space for the kids, utilizing the upgraded play area.
Seeing the importance and potential of this park in enlivening the area with its recreational amenities and creating a sense of place for its community, the developers sought not only to enhance the environment for MeyerHouse’s residents, they saw greater social value in enhancing the park to benefit the community at large.
Liveability & Wellness: To encourage physical wellness for residents, MeyerHouse has a well-equipped Gym and 30m pool within the compound. Although the Gym is located at the lower ground, an airwell in front of the Gym brings light and greenery down into the space.
The social well-being of residents are also considered- understanding residents who wish to entertain big groups of guests, the Clubhouse with its 18-seater private dining room and Outdoor Lounge serves as the perfect spacious yet intimate area for large private gatherings. The party can also spill onto the outdoor lounge which opens up into the pool.
In maximizing utility of the land, gardens are stacked above amenities on the ‘lower ground’ of gardens and water courts that open up the residential unit entrances to natural daylight and ventilation. This doubling up of gardens and amenity levels intensify the communal areas of the development, creating layers of greenery and nature for public enjoyment.
Taking advantage of Meyer Road Playground right outside the development, the developer upgraded the public park with new fitness equipment and playground. Giving residents the option to extend their daily exercises and play outdoor.
Green Plot Ratio: 3.51
Landscape Replacement Area (LRA): 47.56
Biodiversity and Habitat Creation: Native species – 31% Pollinator friendly species – 33%
Design Excellence
Design Concept: The design seeks to expand on housing typologies in land scarce Singapore to meet aspirations for large format premium housing akin to landed homes. This typology is particularly suited to aging homeowners who may wish to right-size to developments that are high on amenities while preserving the privacy and lifestyles from their previous landed homes.
The design is guided by a few key criteria:
• Large homes with a high degree of privacy.
• Direct access to homes with private carparks.
• One-unit-thick apartments for good cross-ventilation and daylighting.
• Large outdoor rooms suited for tropical living.
• Generous gardens and amenities.
• Communal living with bigger and better facilities.
The 56-unit development is located on a large 1-hectare plot adjacent to a public park within a landed housing zone. The development is surrounded by an aging housing estate on 3 sides and overlooked by high-rise condominiums to the south.
The design solution would need to overcome the lack of views and privacy concerns from the adjacent condominiums. And in doing so, leverage on the low-rise nature of the surrounding developments, the natural forested park adjacent to the site and the large land parcel for a unique living experience that embraces openness and Nature.
The conceptual development of the scheme evolved around the desire to leverage on long views across the site towards the open park while ensuring maximum separation of units.
Various options and configurations for the general layout of the development were studied at the early conceptual stages. These studies included solutions that maximized unit numbers, saleable efficiencies, shared vs private cores, over-looking issues and how best to leverage on the assets of the site.
The adopted design would also need to address issues of exclusivity, given the prestige of the development address.
Exterior Aesthetics: MeyerHouse was designed with a ‘C’-configuration block, with residential units pushed to the perimeter of the site and the open end facing the park. This layout opens up the site and allows units to look into a large 50x75m internal garden with all units orientated toward views of the park.
From street level, the building is scaled to the proportions of a traditional French Chateau with a stately façade of customized Glass Fibre Reinforced Concrete (GFRC) louvers and paneling that envelopes the entire form facing the street. The louvered façade is inclined to secure privacy for units from street level and providing sun shading without compromising on ventilation and daylight.
Internally, facing the forested garden, timber venetian blinds screen residences and imbues the tranquil garden spaces with warmth and character.
Within the garden, a long pool is set centrally along the main axial view of the park, reflecting the tall trees and warm façade of the development. The pool is overlooked by guest and entertainment facilities that house a generous 20-seater dining room, a cozy lounge and spacious outdoor activity decks.
The main entrance is designed as an open plaza, blurring the lines between the development and the park. The long driveway that leads into the basement is flanked with trees on both sides, creating a scenic calming drive back home.
The main drop-off is located within the lower water courtyards with terracing gardens cascading down to the lower ground water courtyard, opening up the subterranean arrival lobbies and facilities to natural daylight, ventilation and greenery.
Interior Aesthetics & Finishes: The interiors of MeyerHouse is designed by highly acclaimed interior firm, Yabu Pushelberg. Known for their ability to successfully reinterpret luxury with thoughtful design and fine attention to details, bespoke touches in their design for MeyerHouse lend a beautiful tailored quality to each home and elevates the living experience on every level. The firm is also adept in integrating the appreciation for nature with contemporary comforts and traditional craftsmanship.
Taking inspiration from the city’s rich use of colour, textiles, details and traditional craft techniques and artistry, the following elements characterize the refine luxury in MeyerHouse:
– General Living spaces come with a woven pattern timber flooring inspired by traditional weaving patterns. Contemporary timber tones used for the flooring provides a sense of refinement and warmth to the overall living space.
– The Library/Bar comes with a sculptural island counter, complete with white Onyx marble top and a backdrop of display shelves. Designed to function as a Bar for entertaining guests, the Bar becomes an extension of the main living space for entertainment. For homeowners who entertain less, the shelving provided can also display a collection of books.
– Inspired by the abacus traditionally used in the East, a uniquely designed timber screen was developed for this project.
– All units come with customized marble sinks for Powder Rooms and Typical Bathrooms.
– Master Bathrooms feature customized full marble vanity counters for added touches of hospitality and luxury.
– Master Walk-in-wardrobe fitted with printed glass doors and thoughtfully designed to incorporate hanging of long coats/dresses and drawer units.
Facilities: On-site Concierge – similar to one you will find in a luxury hotel, is located at the arrival lobby, providing concierge services for the residents.
Clubhouse – with 18-seater private dining room, indoor and outdoor lounge. The private dining room is connected to a fully equipped service kitchen located in the basement where residents can hire private chef to complete the dining experience.
30m Pool & Pool Deck – serves as a focal point for the central garden where all the units look into.
Kids Pool – comes with a slide that is uniquely integrated with the landscape, including a playful tunnel for kids to climb before taking a plunge into the pool.
Gym – located in the lower grounds is surrounded by shallow body of water, creating a cool and relaxing mood for the users.
Maintainability: Access for Maintenance:
• Maintenance access for the external facade make use of the fire engine access on the external perimeter as circulation space and provides sufficient launching space for the gondola.
• The working space for the internal façade is well integrated with the landscaping to allow sufficient working space for the gondola and for easy maintenance of the internal facade when required. The entire internal facade which comprises of the automated venetian blinds and roller blinds system is specially designed to be maintained from access panel from the outside of the building and will not require access from within the owner’s unit.
Minimize Maintenance Interventions:
• The unique GFRC facade is a innovative choice of material that requires minimal maintenance and mimizimies the frequency of cleaning, easily cleaned using a jet spray. It is also a high durability material that can endure weathering.
Enable simple maintenance:
• Prefabricated components like Prefabricated Bathroom Units (PBU) are used and standardized where possible to facilitate easy inspection and productive maintenance.
Use of Sensors for Monitoring:
• Use of occupancy sensors at private lobbies/staircases/common toilets
• Provision of lifts with sleep mode features and AC variable voltage and variable frequency (VVVF) to reduce energy consumption
Design Considerations for Unit Layouts: The eventual design solution adopted some unique features with the residential units pushed to the perimeter of the site with an open end facing the park. This ‘C’-configuration opens up the site and allow units to look into a large 50x75m internal garden with all units orientated toward views of the park.
The lush internal garden with tall trees simultaneously channel views towards the park while buffering overlooking views between units.
The development conists of 3 bedroom units, 4 bedroom units and 6 penthouses.Units are individually access via private entrance lobbies located on the ‘lower ground’ with direct lift access to the overhead apartments. With attached carparks, except for 3 bedroom units, this entrance sequence mimics the landed housing typology, creating a seamless arrival experience.
The living dining space for the 4 bedroom units are minimally 14m x 5m and the balcony sliding doors are specially designed to allow owners to open up fully to integrate the indoor/outdoor space, similar to the patio in landed housing. The provision of the automated venetian blinds and roller blinds allow owners to control the amount of light entering the unit and to climate control.
The unit proportion and floor area to elevation ratio allows for good cross ventilation, with approximately 20m frontage facing the central garden. The Master Bedroom has a generous frontage of almost 6m with a touch of hospitality in the walk-in wardrobe and dual vanity bathroom.
Each of the bedrooms also have an ensuite bathroom, each with a unique layout.
Sustainability Excellence
Ecological & Environmental Values: Lighting
• Use of occupancy sensors at private lobbies/staircases/common toilets
• Terracing gardens to bring light into basement, minimizing the need for artificial lighting.
Climate Control
• Use of energy efficient air-conditioners certified under the Singapore Energy Labelling
• More than 80% of units orientated in the North-South direction, maximize daylighting and natural ventilation
• Natural ventilation for service lobby and staircase
• Tropical façade performance, enhance the overall thermal performance of building envelope to minimize heat gain and thus reducing the overall cooling load when required. Choice of glass specs / thermal performance of building envelope
Recycling
• Standard recycling bins provided at the basement service lobby for collection and storage of different recyclable waste
Water
• Use of water fitting certified under WELS (Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme)
• Provision of water efficient washing machine with WELS ‘Good’ rating and above
Energy Conservation
• Provision of sheltered bicycle lots near the entrance to encourage the use of bicycles
• Provision of lifts with sleep mode features and AC variable voltage and variable frequency (VVVF) to reduce energy consumption
• Energy efficient air-conditioners meeting the requirements for the Singapore Energy Labelling Scheme
Environmental Friendliness: N.A.
Green Mark Score: 79
Innovation Excellence
Use of Technology: N.A.
Relevance to Community: N.A.