Vasco Burnay Arquitectura designed Casa do Alpendre from an empty plot in Quinta da Coutada, in Vila Franca de Xira. The site sits in an area with varied architectural languages, where nearby buildings share no clear visual order. An industrial facility also marks the surroundings, with large roof structures and facades covered in different types of metal sheeting. The house responds to this context through a clear plan, controlled orientation, and a layout that protects daily life from the less domestic edges of the plot.
HOUSING
The L-shaped plan organizes the entire project. Along the street, the house creates a frontage that fits the urban logic of the subdivision while keeping the full scale of the volume from immediate view. The longer wing shields the interiors from northern exposure and turns the main shared areas toward the south. This move also allows the house to face away from the industrial complex at the rear of the block, creating a stronger sense of privacy within the plot.
The plan places the sleeping areas to the east and the living areas toward the south and west. This arrangement creates a protected outdoor area that works as the house’s private core. The exterior space receives sun, opens toward the living areas, and stays sheltered from the surrounding conditions. Casa do Alpendre uses this central outdoor area as a point of orientation, giving the house a clear relationship between interior rooms and open-air space.
A continuous south-facing porch runs along the longer wing. This porch functions as an extension of the house, offering a place for dwelling, circulation, and climatic protection. It gives the social areas an outdoor threshold and softens the passage between the interior and the garden. On the opposite side, a ramp follows the natural slope of the land and connects the different exterior levels.
The program separates social and private uses with precision. Vasco Burnay Arquitectura places the living room and kitchen inside the longer volume, creating a continuous shared space beneath the generous pitched roof void. The design removes visual barriers between these areas, giving the main volume a direct and open domestic character. The shorter volume holds four bedrooms, each with an en-suite bathroom, along with a walk-in closet shared by two of the rooms.
At the point where the two volumes meet, the plan gathers the circulation halls, pantry, guest bathroom, and the staircase to the attic of the main volume. Both pitched roofs create habitable attic spaces, adding use to the upper areas of the house. In the smaller volume, the bedroom at the end of the wing provides access to its attic. A bespoke timber staircase serves as both access and storage, functioning as a wardrobe and bookshelf within the room.
The roof level includes a technical terrace that holds the equipment and infrastructure needed for the house. Outside, the continuation of the main pitched roof covers the laundry room and an additional bathroom. The swimming pool occupies an upper platform, while the lowest level near the street frontage forms a forecourt with parking for three vehicles.
Project name: Casa do Alpendre
Architecture Office: Vasco Burnay Arquitectura
Main Architect: Vasco Burnay
Location: Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal
Year of conclusion: 2024
Total area: 250 m²
Builder Ladislau Construções
Engineering: Urpendium Engenharia & Construção Lda
Landscape: Jardim Digital
Fluids Engineering : Urpendium Engenharia & Construção Lda
Thermal Engineering: Urpendium Engenharia & Construção Lda
Architectural photographer: Ivo Tavares Studio
