Parkdale · Bayside Melbourne

Parkdale

A bayside family pool and spa for a suburban Melbourne block, built as one concrete shell on the long axis of the property.

The story

A bayside pool and spa for a suburban Melbourne block, built as one shell.

Parkdale sits a few streets off the bay. The owners came to us with a brief that's the most common one we hear from established families: a pool the kids actually use, a spa next to it for the adults, both worked into the existing backyard without making it feel like a building site for the rest of its life. Same constraints as every suburban Melbourne backyard: Boundary setbacks, neighbours close on three sides, and a fixed deck level set by the existing home.

The site gave us workable ground but a tight footprint. We set the pool into the long axis of the block to give the most lap length without crowding the rear setback, and built the spa as part of the same shell rather than a separate vessel set next to it. One shell, one piece of plumbing, one shared heating and filtration. Better economics for the owners over the life of the build, and a cleaner architectural line in the backyard.

The spillover from the spa into the pool sits on the long edge so the sound carries across the whole deck rather than firing off into one corner. The waterline is held just below the coping, so on a still morning the surface reads as flush with the deck. The fence is frameless glass, set tight to the perimeter, for the same reason it's used on every Bass build. Once the regulations are met, you don't want to look at it.

Completed January 2024. Owner quote from @k8pask — wording TBC

IN PICTURES