cooney villa

A commendation winner at the 2017 ADNZ Awards and recipient of an Excellence Award for ‘adaptive re-use and/or redesign of heritage’ at the 2013 Waipa Heritage Award, this meticulously restored villa was built circa 1907 and is listed in the Waipa District Plan as a building worthy of preservation.

Our clients purchased this property, which proudly overlooks the Cambridge Town Square, with one goal in mind: to restore the villa to its original glory.

The brief was to restore and renovate the building into new professional offices and as such required the project to meet the latest code requirements including accessibility, sanitary facilities, parking etc. The renovations and additions had to be carefully thought through and incorporated into the style of the original villa while preserving the character of the building.

The building has now been named “Walker House” in honour of Howard and Shirley Walker who lived in the house from 1968 to 2011. As a final tribute to this building’s wonderful history, a brass dedication plaque has been crafted and mounted on the front wall under the veranda, noting this important history.