Rural Design were approached by Lochalsh & Skye Housing Association in 2014 to look at the possible development of two sites in Portree, both located on the edge of the town by the Struan Road.
The sites were typical of those available to the Housing Association - a combination of poor ground conditions and significant issues with the limitations of site boundaries. However both sites had the advantage of focused distant views to the surrounding landscape.
The footprint of the top site lent itself to a courtyard development: three blocks of four cottage flats to the perimeter, with a bank of existing trees closing the courtyard. The hilltop location results in most flats having an open outlook over the landscape.
The two storey forms are simple and restrained in the classic slate roof and white render vernacular, lifted above a base of black brick.
The lower site is set against a hill, allowing a larger scale to the development. Two three-storey blocks of flats are book-ended by two-storey cottage flats.
The top floor to the three-storey blocks is a timber-clad architrave over the white render base of the lower flats. The cottage flats are timber-clad with a corrugated roof.
The buildings were traditionally procured and delivered by a local contractor who pre-fabricated panels off-site. This ensured rapid progress to a wind and watertight “shell” - ideal on the Isle of Skye where weather is always a challenge for builders.
