Michael Wiegmann Design Service in Lawson, New South Wales | Architectural designer

Michael Wiegmann Design Service

Locality: Lawson, New South Wales

Phone: +61 2 4759 1000

Address: 37 Kangaroo Street 2783 Lawson, NSW, Australia

Website: http://www.mwds.com.au

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• Home improvement
• Architectural designer

25.01.2022 Rising from the ashes After a devastating house fire and many years of desolation on this site; This New custom home design boasts three large bedrooms, two of which have walk-in-robes. It is very site responsive, having three easy to negotiate living levels. The Mediterranean Courtyard leads directly into the middle level with the bedrooms rising gently to one side and the living spaces descending to the other. The living areas are spacious, with high rated ceilings having a... stone fireplace as their feature which is doubled on the out deck. A large open-style kitchen is complimented with a walk-in-pantry. The double garage is connected to the home via a land bridge and boasts a spacious workshop / storeroom beneath. The bushfire rating was reduced by a well-designed building envelope from Flame Zone to BAL-40, thereby saving the client a considerable sum in construction. The choice of materials not only lead to the rating’s reduction but also adds to the home’s overall aesthetic.

25.01.2022 The way we work is undergoing a paradigm shift that has never been realised in such a short period of time. The way governments are dealing with the current health situation, more and more people are working remotely; some from homes, some in smaller locations away from the centralised ‘office blocks’ of the past. Although I have worked from home for over 40 years, I have seen many corporate entities resisting this notion for various reasons. Yet, now that this has been a rea...lity that has been foisted upon them, they will come to realise the advantages. Let’s explore some for the pros & cons; Advantages: 1. Lowering or reducing altogether the need for a corporate, central location 2. Hugely reduced travel related issues; parking, time spent getting to and from work 3. A greater degree of flexibility in hours of operation; some starting earlier while other working later in a day 4. Massive saving in building rents, maintenance, insurance, etc. 5. Staff being able to multi-task at home while still achieving work milestones 6. Huge reduction in traffic spikes (peak hours will be a thing of the past) 7. The savings in traffic related costs will be an effective pay rise and allow for greater spending 8. Longer business hours Disadvantages: 1. A greater vacancy rate on commercial properties, requiring a rethink on use With regard to the lessening of use for commercial properties; these will need to be re-tasked to retain viability. We already know that retail has been severely hit by online buying. This has been exponentially fast-forwarded by the current situation. The likes of Myer have already flagged closing in Sydney. Many other retailers are moving online instead of in-shop selling. This will result in an enormous stock of empty shops, not only in the High Streets in your town but shopping centres as we known them now. What do you do with this stock? I believe, it isn’t a great stretch to convert many of these to residential use. Various sized, dwellings opening onto atriums within existing shopping malls that already have food outlets as well as other entertainment in place. Much of the surplus parking, and there will be huge amounts of that, can be re-tasked for goods warehousing for the localised online delivery network. There will then be empty or partially used office towers. Much of this space could be used residentially. The public transport system in the inner city would serve us much better if the morning and afternoon peaks are replaced with day-long residential traffic. The imagination goes on, as the world has changed. It is up to you to decide if the change is for the better or not. The world has changed, so let’s adapt and use this as an opportunity to make the change worthwhile.

23.01.2022 Firstly, I have always championed the need for accreditation of Building Designers in the industry. BUT, what on earth are these politicians going on about? All persons working in the industry (with the exception of Building Designer, yes even architects) are licensed or regulated in some fashion. So what is all the fuss about. More regulation won't stop this sort of thing happening. People doing their job properly will go a long way to solving this sort of thing....

23.01.2022 Bernti’s Mountain Inn DA now fully approved. Great news. Start date slated for the end of the ’21 snow season. This was a particularly great result; Thredbo is a hard nut to crack when it comes to approvals. No legitimate complaints received and the only thing we change was swapping a window for a door. Super happy

23.01.2022 Leura Sushi Bar This proposal introduces a dining experience not available in Leura. The new Sushi Bar will adjoin the existing Leura carpark and the site also boasts a local heritage dwelling building in the inter-war period in a Mediterranean style of architecture. Full credit should go to the development team of Trevor King (Heritage Consultant) and Nuala Cavanagh (Town Planner) for allowing this project to proceed to a Planning Panel for consideration.

23.01.2022 We have just submitted a DA for a new dwelling in Glenbrook, "Casa Laguna". This 2 storey house boast 5 bedrooms and several lining areas including a detached garage and studio with lots of out-door living spaces all located opposite The Glenbrook Lagoon

22.01.2022 User-friendly and sized to suit the occupants of a secondary dwelling, this one-bedroom cottage has everything you need to down-size, provide additional accommodation on your block or as a holiday bungalow. Set in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney with significant views, it also deals with bushfire and environmental issues to make this the perfect ‘liveable’ lodge.

21.01.2022 I very rarely crow about achievement, but over 30k YouTube views; WOW

20.01.2022 Bernti's Mountain Inn is as iconic as Thredbo itself, forming part of the core of the original village after its initial construction in 1977 closely followed by major additions in the early 80's. The building's current owner certainly shares the vision of Bernti & Trisha (the original owners) with the unveiling of this vision for the future of this much loved ski lodge, restaurant and bar.

19.01.2022 The proposal is to provide for some much needed 'alfresco' dining to one of the Blue Mountains most loved localities. The site currently slopes away and makes it difficult to enjoy the vista that immediately captivate. It is proposed to provide a level, tiered deck amongst the cherry trees and native shrubs for the enjoyment of diners and passers-by alike.

19.01.2022 Construction of the Cobbitty Chalet is about to commence.

16.01.2022 Yet another success; Casa Laguna (Glenbrook) has been approved for construction by Blue Mountains City Council. This spacious 5 bedroom home boasts several living spaces for a growing family, with plenty of capacity for decades into the future. We had to overcome several issue such a Building Height, Front Setbacks, as well as a plethora of niggly points. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAhuBfScIaM... See more

14.01.2022 OK, Aunty, you need to pickup your game; way too much misinformation here. It started off badly and got progressively worse. To start with the premise that building standards are low and therefore contributing high energy costs and citing a crappy 100yo house as an example is pour in the extreme. 100 years ago that house would be lucky to have had electricity connected to it. Living and working in NSW as I do, we have definitely been falling behind the national average (and ...average is the operative word). Australia has some of the worst building standards in the developed would when you look at energy efficiency. It's not hard or expensive to build a well performing house; I've done it. We live in the mid-Blue Mountains (750m above see level) where it get hot and certainly old. My mean house temperature sit at between 19 and 25 degrees regardless of the outside temps that can get down to 2-4 degrees in winter. Yes, we have heating and cooling, but these are used minimally and therefore cost little to run. Is passive design the answer? Sure, but it's not the only answer. Smarter siting, orientation and better use of existing materials will get you 80% of the way there.

13.01.2022 Michael Wiegmann Design Service (MWDS) as just received an approval (after 54weeks in council) for a new dwelling in Cobbitty, NSW. The building consists of 7 bedrooms and several living areas, both inside and out and boast a style that echoes the grand ski chalets of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The approval process of long and arduous and the application was determined with a recommendation for approval by the Local Planning Panel. Many thanks go to the patient an...d long-suffering clients that shared the vision and to Michael Edwards Lifestyle Homes for encouragement along the way. A special thanks should also go to Eli Gescheit from Navon Solutions for the report and planning assistance provided. Colorado Springs comes to Cobbitty. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGQk6jvJAcI All design work done in SketchUp

12.01.2022 When inspiration meets the nanny After nearly 10 months in council for a knock-down / re-build of a single dwelling, this is the result. A sad case of stubborn council nannies, who refuse of relinquish a 22yo LEP, holding up a build. What was the problem? They didn’t ‘like’ the design. Solution; move away from a flat roof that can be maintained easily and complied with Height of Building limits and bury a of the front elevation so it didn’t ‘look’ like a two storey house. Of note is that not one change was made to the floor plans / layout / footprint. Needless to say the roof now is over height, but that didn’t seem to matter one bit. Congratulation Blue Mountains City Council. Footnote: At least the client is still happy.

08.01.2022 This grand and spacious home is designed to cater for the needs of a large family with diverse interests. It boast 7 bedrooms, all with either built-in or walk-in robes. The house replaces an existing bungalow and is located on 10 acres in south-west Sydney’s rural fringe of rolling countryside and horse studs. The dwelling has several large living spaces, both indoor and outdoor, including a large fire place in the main living room, a snooker room with 20 foot high vaulted... ceilings and bar, a rumpus room, an outdoor cabana with a fireplace and attached bar and gymnasium that has its own facilities such as two showers and toilets , as well as an in ground pool accessed from all outdoor spaces. The open plan kitchen / dining is serviced by a butler’s pantry. The overarching design borrows much from the ski lodges of north America and Canada and will be finished in complementary materials. The crown to this design is the energy efficiency; topping in at 6.8 stars without the ground source heat exchange system to be employed, make this home truly suitable for the extremes in temperatures experienced in this area. For further information, please feel free to contact me and by all means subscribe to this channel.

08.01.2022 The NSW Government has recently made amendments to State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 to facilitate bush-fire related response and recovery. The demolition, temporary repair and non-structural permanent repair of bushfire affected buildings will be exempt from needing development approval. There are provisions relating to heritage and asbestos issues. The temporary storage (< 2 years) of goods on fire affected property using a sh...ipping container is also exempt. These and other bushfire related planning reforms are set out in the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment's Bushfire Recovery webpage including: fee waivers for DA fees, Planning Reform fees and BASIX certificates fees as well as allowing extended temporary accommodation in caravans and the like for people affected by bushfires. (Initially shared by Catherine Gorrie). See more

06.01.2022 Jindabyne Retreat - Pentagon Apartments One of the first multi-residential (strata) projects in Jindabyne. This development boasts 3 and 4 bedroom with 2 and 3 bathrooms designed for both high turnover winter activities as well as long-term accommodation. We achieved maximum site yield while retaining the site’s topography and character.

05.01.2022 New Custom Home - Blaxland, NSW Rising from the ashes; After a devastating house fire and many years of desolation on this site; This New custom home design boasts three large bedrooms, two of which have walk-in-robes. It is very site responsive, having three easy to negotiate living levels. The Mediterranean Courtyard leads directly into the middle level with the bedrooms rising gently to one side and the living spaces descending to the other. The living areas are spacious, ...with high rated ceilings having a stone fireplace as their feature which is doubled on the out deck. A large open-style kitchen is complimented with a walk-in-pantry. The double garage is connected to the home via a land bridge and boasts a spacious workshop / storeroom beneath. The bushfire rating was reduced by a well-designed building envelope from Flame Zone to BAL-40, thereby saving the client a considerable sum in construction. The choice of materials not only lead to the rating’s reduction but also adds to the home’s overall aesthetic.

03.01.2022 On the surface, this is great news for some.... I have actually had a number of clients and potential clients discuss this with me. But the criteria is very tight. Putting the income and spend limits to one side, what about the timing? Now, many Building Designers and architects will have the ability to avail themselves of the Codes SEPP (Complying Development with a 10 day turnaround time). That's great. But we here in the Blue Mountains (and I'm sure some other LGAs) will n...ot have this option. Due in no small part as a result of the narrow-minded planners would have resisted the move to the standard instrument. In other words, we are stuck with 23 year old planning regulations that require a DA for everything. This council is notorious for it's snail-like pace and even if DAs were to be submitted within the next 4 weeks, there is little or no guarantee that consent can be issued so that contract can be entered into by December 31. So, where do you stand if you lucked out because of "red tape"?

01.01.2022 Hello boys and girls, it's the 1st of May and do you know what that means? Yes, the new NCC comes in. Now for those who would like an editable (copy & paste) flavoured version, please use the link below; share the love.