Ski Chalet at Blue Mountains

This recreational home is sited in a development at the foot of the Alpine Ski Club in the Town of Blue Mountains.

The building is sited on a residential street facing the ski hills and is designed for Apres-ski entertaining with six bedrooms, open living spaces, a recreation room, a sauna, and a courtyard with a hot tub and firepit.

The challenge was to create a recreational feel in a building which is within a suburban style subdivision with styles ranging from neo-classical to modern. The goal was achieved by making the courtyard the centrepiece of the design. The layout of the house around a courtyard not only protects the hot tub and firepit from prevailing winds but provides a house that is more inward looking, versus a view outward to the residential street. The courtyard device also allows natural light to penetrate the living spaces, while enhancing the transparency between indoor and outdoor rooms. While the building is large, the massing from the street is of low scale in contrast to the adjacent two-storey houses. The portion of the house in front of the courtyard is one-storey, while the portion behind the courtyard is two- storey, which not only reduces the height at the front elevation but affords a view of the ski hill from the gallery on the second storey which also overlooks the living room.

Interior materials include hardwood floors, natural stone, rift sawn white oak, and douglas fir post and beam ceilings. Exterior materials are dark stained natural wood siding, metal standing seam roof, aluminum clad widows and natural stone.