BJ Millar Constructions has taken out one of Australia’s most prestigious housing awards, the 2020 HIA–CSR Australian Home of the Year, with the Queensland builder acknowledged for its Cove House project, an exquisitely unique timber-clad and tropical home on the Gold Coast.
The award was one of two for the HIA member, who also took out 2020 HIA Australian Custom Built Home during the virtual 2020 HIA–CSR Australian Housing Awards ceremony on 29 May.
BJ Millar Constructions’ Cove House is a sophisticated nod to brutalist architecture and tropical modernism, masterfully crafted with an extraordinary level of customised detail. Beautiful in its understated elegance, the home’s unique design experiments with volume and space under a floating roof, and follows an unconventional layout revolving around lush, open-air garden atriums.
A powerful mix of textured off-form concrete walls and stone finishes are paired with expertly wrought timber trimmings, notably the individually-made wooden battens that curve around the exterior and transfer indoors to zone the private and public rooms.
The charcoal hued kitchen, including a hidden wine cellar, dominates the length of the home before advancing onto an amenity-filled outdoor entertaining terrace. This vibrant space offers a barbeque, built-in fireplace, sunken lounge and pool for the homeowners to enjoy while overlooking the Gold Coast’s Coomera River.
With a submerged rainwater tank beneath the driveway, 15kW solar PV and three Tesla energy storage batteries, this magical home practically exists off the grid.
The criteria for the Custom Built Home category, partnered by Beacon Lighting Commercial, is for an individual house designed and built on contract, specifically for the site and according to the requirements and brief of a client.
The winners of each home category in the HIA Australian Housing Awards program, including Custom Built Home, Display Home, Project Home, Renovation/Addition Project, Spec Home, Townhouse/Villa of the Year and Apartment of the Year, compete for the HIA Australian Home of the Year award.