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The Herschel

Cape Town, South Africa

Design of a stand-alone, upmarket residential development scheme across three consolidated residential sites in the prime location of Claremont. 

The Herschel

In 2009, Peerutin Architects was approached by Cape-based Sandak-Lewin Developments to design a stand-alone, upmarket residential development scheme across 3 consolidated residential sites in this prime location.
The ultra-contemporary, seven-storey apartment block comprises 66 Sectional Title Apartments and over 130 parking bays in two basements. The units range in size from 50m2 to about 170m2. These include unique garden studios at ground level to extraordinary two and three-bed penthouses.

A rooftop entertainment area and swimming pool complete the offering. The building offers a paired-down simplicity, where simple white walls are offset by the muted grays of the aluminum fenestration and balustrades and the contrasting chocolate-brown sliding shutters, arranged randomly by individual owners, will balance the modular nature of the main facades.

The site is the consolidation of four separate residential erven, resulting in a total site area of 2364m2. It is flat and rectangular in shape, spanning North-South with the long side facing East and West respectively. It is bounded on 3 sides by Herschel Close on the North, Herschel Road on the South and partially on Oak Avenue to the East. Significant neighbours include Herschel Private School for Girls, and a seven-storey block of flats next door.

It is within 5 minutes walking distance to the popular Cavendish Square shopping centre and is extremely well placed for UCT and other leading schools. The site enjoys panoramic views over the bowling greens to the West towards the Table Mountain Reserve that overlooks the Southern Suburbs. 

Designing a seven-storey building in the heart of a low-to-medium-rise residential neighborhood will always pose significant challenges. Balancing the developer’s needs for acceptable profits relative to the risks they are taking, and delivering desirable products to the market while at the same time producing a building that is met with a universally positive response is the main challenge. The Herschel is a tall, elegant and bold attempt to address these issues directly.