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I first saw it about 15 years ago. It had been a family home for years, a Miss Havisham house, half closed-up, chock-a-block with magnificent antique furniture, mostly completely borer ridden,’ says Craig Johnson, one of the partners with Harry Hirsch and Carey and Dunstan Farrell in 271 Cowey Road. Meandering front verandahs, sloping gables, large bay windows and established front gardens were part of the architectural lingo that evolved on Durban’s Berea during the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. Modern translation includes similar features, only more linear, less ornate, yet considering the climate, still speaking sense. The original property stretched between 11th Avenue and Cowey Road. Registered in 1903, it was a private residence, complete with stables and a coach house, until the mid ’90s. Its heritage status – a prized conservation award in 2002 – meant future alterations were carefully monitored. Its first major conversion was basement excavation, when architects Trish and Frank Emmett deftly freed up 160m2 of the basement for office space. ‘It was a big job, with some major engineering procedures required to support the whole top structure of the house,’ Craig adds.  In 2008, the rise in rates led the owners to pursue further development of what was effectively a double site. Dunstan comments, ‘At that time, interest rates were climbing, Eskom load shedding was at its peak and confidence in the SA economy at an all time low! We decided to build anyhow, in view of our continued confidence in the country. It proved to be a great decision, as from there on the project flew and has been a complete success – completed under budget, and six weeks early! Thanks must go to contractors Macwin Construction and BoE Bank for their professionalism and service delivery.’ Under the guidance of Frank once again, designs were submitted for the creation of an adjacent building that complemented the original homestead, yet presented a more modern face. ‘We aimed to mirror or complement the existing building by creating a contemporary representation, one which didn’t detract from the old building, yet was clearly new,’ says Frank. ‘Respect for the scale and nature of the original was a strong consideration that guided the design.’ Frank describes the empathetic design elements they chose to link the two buildings: ‘Externally, we employed a canopy roof at the lower level to tie in with the wraparound verandah, and glass bay windows to echo those in the house. The format remained rectangular, while the cool charm of the garden was highlighted by including banks of windows, ensuring unrestricted views.’ The existing vegetation received special treatment, including a customised hole in an outside lean-to to accommodate a palm. ‘Parking was the biggest exercise though,’ Frank quips. ‘The stinkwood tree in front of the house has an extensive root system and called for some tricky arrangements!’ The raising of the building created valuable extra parking, while the interior gained an additional 300m2 worth of office space, one part occupied by advertising agency, Verve Marketing, the other by an engineering company. The original farmhouse, occupied by Farrell & Associates Attorneys, is decorated in an appropriately quiet, modern colonial style, while the new building is free to go contemporary. At Verve in particular, decorator Carmen Kelly created an edgy, modern feel in keeping with the ‘energy, enthusiasm and vigour’ that the firm works by. ‘There was already wonderful double-volume space, exposed steel beams, and a spacious open-plan feel, as well as large bay windows to work with,’ comments Carmen, ‘and I didn’t want to detract from this.’ Workspaces have been demarcated with colour and Perspex, and the maximised natural light and clean lines create an inviting atmosphere. By adding slatted screens and sliding blinds, Carmen has engineered a workspace that can be completely open plan or quickly converted to private offices by sliding a few screens. Here, too, the outdoor element has been maximised. While the pressing palms and foliage stay just beyond the windows, organic forms such as Nguni hides and indoor plants mix with the clean modern materials. At the back of the property, the stables and coach house remain unchanged on the outside, but inside they’ve been renovated to suit the tenants. Harry and Craig of Pinetown-based Building Credit Management/Ciras/Soleprop, and Dunstan Farrell are clearly as content with the masterful reworking of the property as they’re satisfied at doing their conservation bit for Old Durban.

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