As soon as local developers Benjamin Funk and Ingrida Kubeckaite stepped inside Queen’s Gate Place, the partition walls of the former school’s makeshift classrooms faded away revealing an underlying period grandeur. Currently mid-conversion, they reflect on the process so far and securing tailored finance that has made the project a viable reality.
There’s a stage in every renovation project where you reach the point of no return. Walls have been knocked through, wires and brickwork exposed and temporary posts hold up the ceiling. It’s also at this point that the true potential of a space often reveals itself. For developer partners Benjamin Funk and Ingrida Kubeckaite, though, this Eureka moment happened almost immediately in their mind’s eye.
An old GCSE school that bore hallmarks of its past, it was run down with partition walls carving the space up into classrooms where marker boards, students’ lockers, a drinking fountain and even a photography dark room were intact. “Being local residents ourselves, we know what the insides of these grand buildings look like, and this was not that,” notes Benjamin. “We learned that there was planning approval in place a few years prior to convert the commercial property to a residential two floor maisonette. Together, this set our ambitious creative wheels in motion.”
“The bones were always there – we could see what it was in the past – and we fell in love with the idea of restoring it to what it deserved to be”
Despite its tired state, glimpses of the past shone through, the couple recall, from the intricate chandeliers to the ornate cornicing. “Cramped rooms in strange configurations hid the grandness of what otherwise would be a beautiful space, and historically a brilliant home,” says Ingrida. “The bones were always there – we could see what it was in the past – and we fell in love with the idea of restoring it to what it deserved to be.”
This, however, was not a textbook renovation, both in terms of the design and, crucially, the financing. “It wasn’t a straightforward, turnkey, high-street, first-time buyer mortgage,” Benjamin admits. A fortuitous introduction to Kristian Hoy from the Domus Nova finance team provided the “creative solutions” the couple required to get the ball rolling. “Kristian was determined to find a viable path to make a competitive offer and secure the necessary backing to proceed,” they explain.
With financing in place in record time, Benjamin and Ingrida could turn to the task at hand: securing updated planning permission for a new, historically sensitive home and, thereafter, stripping the property back to brick. As you might imagine, visualising a design specification for all 3,150 square feet of a Grade II-listed property can be challenging, but fortunately for the duo this part of the creative process comes naturally to Ingrida. “Ingrida can look at something – anything – and know what to do. It’s instinctive, organic and always ‘right’,” says Benjamin admiringly.
“Kristian at Domus Nova was determined to find a viable path to make a competitive offer and secure the necessary backing to proceed”
After meeting with a short-list of potential design partners, Ingrida chose to collaborate with Pierre Saison of the design and architecture studio Dorin & Coppel, who oversaw the technical drafts of interior design plans and materials selection, as well as aiding with the contracting tender and on-site project management. The 3D renderings showcase sleek, finessed and luxurious living spaces finished in neutral tones and tactile natural textures, although the reality is still a work-in-progress. With demolition now complete, next up, re-plumbing, re-wiring, insulating and damp-proofing can take place followed by the installation of underfloor heating and air conditioning before the joinery and decoration can begin.
“‘Cutting corners’ isn’t in Dorin & Coppel’s vocabulary,” notes Ingrida – a sentiment the couple very much share as they leave no hypothetical stone unturned in their sensitive yet forward-thinking renovation. “As a Grade II-listed property built in the late-1800s, one tricky piece of the project is the balance required to restore the historical heritage of the space while also integrating modern ways of living.”
Given this constant dialogue between old and new, Benjamin and Ingrida have looked to similar renovation properties for inspiration, with sometimes striking surprises. “It’s become clear to us that it’s actually quite rare for developers to put in the time, effort and financing to assure that the final product is not just done, but done as it deserves,” concedes Benjamin. “While we’re admittedly not building the home for ourselves, given our confidence in what we know we can achieve and what we’d expect to have ourselves, we do find real pleasure in creating something that we would be overjoyed to live in.”
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