Reimagining Sustainable Town Centre Living

A New Approach to Town Centre Living

Our Irish towns are hollowing out. Main streets that once housed scores of families now have a handful of families remaining. This de-densification, and the resulting Dereliction Crisis, has both negative environmental and economic consequences on a local and national scale.

There is also great potential for our rural towns and villages to be a key tool in tackling our Housing Crisis and the battle against climate change, while also bringing vibrancy back to our communities – something which is highlighted in the Town Centre First initiative.

Densification and Activation

Scotch House aims to challenge the concept that Irish people don’t want to live in our rural town centres. This mixed-use project unlocks urban back land potential with retail space and a variety of residential unit types for multi-generational living. A stacking approach to densification and infill is used which allows the existing buildings to be retained and the creation of amenity spaces in between the new volumes.

A New Approach to Town Centre Living

The project combines the best qualities of the suburbs that Irish people aspire to with the best of living in a town centre. Each unit has its own door access and links to shared garden spaces and public and private terraces. A communal hub contains remote working space and other facilities while a greenhouse and vegetable beds offer the potential to grow your own food.

Gardens for People and Nature
The shared gardens contain native planting and are designed to encourage insects and urban birds, like the swift, to make Scotch House their home.

Mixing uses
The ground floor contains an activated public realm with commercial and amenity functions while the upper levels are for residents.

Pedestrian Permeability
A public access laneway connects through the site making Ballina town centre more pedestrian friendly.

Fostering Community
Scotch House is arranged to create interactions between residents and the wider town to develop a true sense of community.

Building Lightly

To retain and build upon existing structures a lightweight construction strategy is employed. The existing structure is reinforced with steel where required and panelized straw blocks are used to build the new volumes. The green blue roofs form the majority of the weight. The building assembly is designed to be circular.