Ree

Workshop and accommodation units near Highlands Motorsport Park

AO Architecture designed Ree, a multi-tenancy development in Cromwell for a relatively unusual market – owners wanting substantial workshop and vehicle storage space with somewhere to stay above. Its location near Highlands Motorsport Park made that combination particularly relevant. Large roller doors serve the workshops at ground level, while accommodation occupies the upper floor behind glazed balconies and timber-framed openings.

A workshop you can stay above

The ground floor is designed first as a working vehicle space, not as an oversized domestic garage. Large roller doors allow bigger vehicles and equipment into the double-height workshops, with an internal stair connecting directly to the accommodation above.

A CLT mid-floor forms the dividing plane between those two uses. Below it is the robust workshop environment; above it are the smaller-scale living spaces. That separation is fundamental to making the unusual combination work as one unit.

Giving the accommodation its own identity

The two uses are also easy to read from outside. Precast concrete and dark profiled metal define the workshop volumes and large doors, while timber is concentrated around entrances, balconies and upper-level glazing.

Deep timber frames project around the accommodation openings, creating sheltered edges to the balconies and giving the upper floor a much finer scale than the industrial spaces below.

Keeping access practical

The units are arranged in an L-shaped development, but the geometry was not just about composition. Fitting the buildings onto the site while maintaining good access to the large workshop doors was a key part of the planning.

That matters when the spaces are intended for cars, trailers and larger equipment. The development keeps the route to the workshops direct, while the accommodation sits above rather than taking up the ground-level area needed for vehicles.