Developer makes a statement with luxury green 'superhome'

Developer Damian Lawrance jumped off when the going was good in 2005, leaving his job as design development director at apartment specialists City Lofts to launch his own small company, LaRock.

While City Lofts and a host of other developers are now defunct, he has continued building through the recession and is putting the finishing touches to a luxurious eco home in Harrogate.

The "super home" 1zero4(104) Leeds Road is a bold statement and sums up LaRock's ambition is to stand out from the crowd by creating eco-friendly, contemporary one-offs.

This determination to be different, together with strict control and business diversification into serviced apartments, has resulted in a healthy balance sheet (turnover for 2009 was 4m and projected turnover for 2010-2011 is 6m) and he's graduated from a one- man office in Boston Spa to a base in Knaresborough with 35 staff.

There is already a queue of would-be buyers for his "green house", which hasn't been marketed for sale yet.

The property, which replaced a three-bedroom cottage, is a dramatic and distinct modern design with triple-height atrium, five bedroom suites and a home cinema.

It is built from polystyrene blocks and features a highly-insulated warm roof system, solar panels and an air source heat pump. The asking price will be over 1.25m.

"I'm interested in modern methods of construction. Belgium, Sweden and Germany have been using the warm roof systems and air source heat pumps for the best part of 30 years so we know they work," says Damian.

"The polystyrene blocks have fantastic insulating qualities and they are quicker and easier to build with, though the cost is similar to traditional materials.

"What we're doing is embracing what our neighbours in Europe have been doing for years."

The eco friendly elements aren't just for show or to impress planners, says Damian, who is celebrating the success of his first major green project – an eco extension to create 14 classrooms at the private Cundall Manor School in North Yorkshire.

After spotting the potential for expansion in this area, LaRock has embarked on an eco-schools education programme for independent schools in Yorkshire suggesting improvements to existing buildings and new builds.

"Right from the beginning when I started LaRock, I wanted to create eco-friendly bespoke developments. That was the goal," says Damian.

"After getting some wool on my back with refurbishments, we are able to do what we set out

to do achieve.

"The expansion of the company has green build as a priority ahead of the Government's stipulation that new build homes are to be carbon neutral by 2016."

Damian, 37, who studied architecture at university, and whose family is in the plumbing business, admits to control freakery, which is why almost everything is "in-house" rather than contracted out.

He has his own design and construction team along with logoed vans and uniforms. Everything from designing and brick laying to bespoke joinery to architectural metalwork is done at their HQ in Knaresborough.

His uncompromising approach is also evident in his own home, which caused some eyebrow-raising in the village of Marton cum Grafton.

He spent 300,000 remodelling an historic home to reflect his 21st century tastes.

A total of 40 skips were filled with everything from old fireplaces, plaster-and-lath ceilings to doors, skirting boards and radiators, which were ripped out to make way for his contemporary taste and love

of designs by Tom Dixon and Ligne Roset.

"I like the idea of moving forward and looking at the latest the ideas," he says.

He already had serviced apartments in his sights when the recession forced him to enter that market.

"The refurbishments we were working on in Harrogate were turned into The Lawrance serviced apartments and that has worked really well. The yield on serviced apartments is higher than on conventional lets.

"We're now expanding into York and other areas that want this sort of alternative to hotel rooms," says Damian, whose company name is a combination of Lawrance and his wife's maiden name, Bullock.

He survived the recession, he says, because LaRock was lean.

"There was too much fat in a lot of property businesses before the recession.

"Everyone had a PA, expense accounts and fancy cars. We're much leaner than that."

He is now looking at increasing his workforce by 50 per cent

and is building two more bespoke "super homes" in Harrogate as well as offering a design and build service for everyone from private individuals to the public sector.

Next month he will launch "Damian Lawrance Design" (DLD), which will design and make bespoke furniture, fixtures and fittings for domestic and commercial clients.

"It's the last piece of the jigsaw to make us a bespoke one-stop shop," he says. "No-one in this area has full vertical integration.

"We do everything in-house and we have control of the whole build process from start to finish."

La Rock: www.larock.co.uk.

The Lawrance serviced apartments: www. thelawrance.co.uk