Riverside House
Kelowna, British Columbia, Apr. 2024
“The project explores a modular house inspired by mid-century construction techniques.”
- Christopher Breedy
This design came with many challenges based on the existing conditions of the site. Prone to flash flooding the clients want to create something special and take on the environment. The Riverside House is located at the edge of an active floodplain, The project adopts a strategy of elevation, allowing the building to hover above the terrain while maintaining a relationship with the water, forest, and distant mountain ranges.
“Elevation became both a protective measure and a way to preserve the view.”
- Christopher Breedy
The design rejects conventional ground level foundations in favor of a suspended structure supported by slender steel columns and concrete blocks. The resulting underside functions as a flexible zone for parking and shaded outdoor use.
This approach allows floodwaters to pass unobstructed beneath the home, preserving the natural behavior of the site. The structural pays homage to Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House emphasizing the philosophy of coexisting with its surrounding
The Riverside House uses rectilinear volumes wrapped in a continuous horizontal band of windows.
The material palette is limited using only steel, glass, concrete, and natural wood, allowing proportion and construction to take precedence over decorations.
Wood-paneled walls wrap the interior, bringing warmth. A corten steel fireplace anchors the living space, and with its elevation, the landscape becomes a living backdrop.
The open plan kitchen, dining, and living areas are seamlessly connected, forming the central gathering space of the residence.
The kids bedroom were fitted with custom wood-slatted bunk beds built into the structure, maximizing vertical space while maintaining material consistency.
The primary bedroom features a long window that frames treetops , creating the sensation of living in a treehouse suspended within the canopy.
Like the other rooms, the guest bedroom features a full window wall that brings in the morning sun and follows the same material palette throughout.
By minimizing site disturbance and allowing native vegetation and rock formations to manage runoff naturally, the project supports ecological resilience while reducing long-term intervention. The Riverside House is shaped by the landscape. In doing so, it offers a design that is responsive to its environment.