The site is located at the beginning of High East Street, at the London facing entrance to the walled town of Roman Dorchester (Durnovaria)
The new development consists of 10 upmarket town houses and apartments, arranged around a private parking courtyard with gardens and balconies overlooking the adjacent stream.
The design of the building group, given its sensitive location in the Conservation Area was developed with a palette of traditional materials. Formal ashlar elevations face the High Street. Rustic brick and stone rubble form the elevations of the warehouse style block overlooking the stream.
A statue of a white hart sat above the entrance porch of the original pub. In the interests of creating a link between the historic building and the new 21st century townscape, the developers restored it and placed it on a plinth where it can be seen from London Road and the riverside walk.
Awarded the inaugural Derek Beauchamp Design Award by the Dorchester Civic Society in 2017, the committee commented that the project “creates a memorable gateway to the centre of Dorchester” and that the “design reflects a thoughtful analysis of the site and its surroundings…a most worthy winner“.
Completion Date 2017