Newtown Hill Heritage Area

Newtown Hill Heritage Area

This precinct is distinguished by historically wealthy residential areas and private schools situated on the crest and slopes of the Newtown ridge, which has views east towards Geelong city and beyond. This area is dominated by a mixture of Victorian, Edwardian and Californian Bungalow and later residential development. The area is characterised by predominantly large single (and some two-storey) decorative timber and brick houses dating from the 1850's to the 1920's, representing the architectural quality of housing development in Newtown.

This area is significant for its architectural diversity and quality representing a wide range of the residential building styles evident in Newtown, and containing a number of individually important buildings. The retention of traditional street features and trees in Virginia Street demonstrates the qualities inherent in a relatively intact streetscape. It is historically significant as a representative embodiment of family life during the Victorian and Edwardian periods.

Objectives

- To retain the bluestone lanes, nature strips, street tree planting, and traditional garden settings.

- To retain the intact examples of Victorian, Edwardian, Federation and interwar Californian Bungalow style predominately single storey double fronted detached houses and discrete building type groupings.

- To retain the uniformity of scale of the area including predominantly single storey height, regular front and side setbacks, side or rear driveways, building separation and subdivision pattern.

- To encourage the contemporary interpretation of traditional building design within the area.

- To encourage the use of traditional construction materials in the area.

- To encourage the use of appropriate fence types (up to 1400mm), designs and locations.

- To encourage the appropriate development, form and scale of garages and/or carports.

Policy

Where a permit is required for a proposal, it is policy to:

- Promote buildings that incorporate the following design characteristics:

- Detached, predominantly single-storey, double fronted buildings.

- Complex building forms.

- Hipped and/or gable roofs with a pitch between 20-35 degrees.

- Narrow or wide eaves and verandah's (some recessed).

- Rectangular timber windows (that are vertically orientated singularly, or as a horizontal bank if grouped).

- Rich ornamental detail designed in a contemporary manner.

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- Horizontal weatherboard wall cladding (an alternative to horizontal weatherboard cladding is a smooth render over masonry).

- Timber framed windows.

- Slate, terra-cotta tiles or non-zincalume corrugated sheet metal roofing.

- Encourage existing allotment setbacks to be retained.

- Discourage buildings that are constructed boundary to boundary.

- Encourage the separation between buildings to be equivalent to neighbouring buildings.

- Encourage front setbacks that are equivalent to the setback of neighbouring buildings or if these are different, the setback may be at a distance that is between the setbacks of neighbouring buildings.

- Encourage intact culturally significant Victorian, Edwardian, Federation and interwar Californian Bungalow places to be retained.

- Encourage building heights to be single storey and to incorporate the following:

- The highest point of the roof should not be greater than the highest adjacent single storey building, whereby height of the roof should not be greater than the main (overall), adjacent ridge line;

- The proportion of building roof should not be greater than the proportion of roof to walls of the buildings visually connected to it;

- The springing height of the roof should be equivalent to neighbouring buildings, or if these are different, the springing height may be between those of neighbouring buildings; and

- The roof form and massing of the building should be drawn from the significant neighbouring buildings visually connected to it.

- Encourage new garages and/or carports to be located at the side or rear of existing and/or infill buildings.

- Buildings and works, and fences types, should comply with the City of Greater Geelong Heritage and Design Guidelines 1997, which is an Incorporated Document.

References

City of Newtown Urban Conservation Study, Volumes 1-4, prepared by Context Pty Ltd for the City of Newtwon, (1991)

City of Newtown Urban Conservation Study, Volumes 5(a) and 5(b), prepared by Richard Peterson for the City of Greater Geelong, (1997)

Geelong Region Historic Buildings and Objects Study Volume 2, prepared by Allan Willingham for the Geelong Regional Commission, (1986)

City of Greater Geelong Heritage and Design Guidelines, prepared by Helen Lardner for the City of Greater Geelong, (1997)

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