LIVING ON A PRAYER
OWNERS of these high-end church conversions must have seen the light as the Geelong properties hit the market within days of each other.
The former churches at Rippleside and East Geelong were converted to private residences after the congregations sold up in the past decade.
The weatherboard church was relocated at Victoria St and Balmoral Cres, Rippleside, before the twostorey conversion took place, which also allowed for two two-storey townhouses and a massive redevelopment of the original clifftop manse.
Whitford agent John Moran said Lachlan Shepherd Architects and J
Cole Constructions guided the redevelopment.
He said the church was transformed with two bedrooms, one bathroom and a double garage.
“In the main living area there’s still a portion of cathedral ceiling, church-style windows that mix with that really high-end renovation. They’ve done a spectacular job.”
The converted church at 35 Balmoral Cres and townhouse at 64 Victoria St go to auction on November 13. Price hopes are $890,000 to $970,000 for the church and $1.3m to $1.4m for the three-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse with water views.
At East Geelong, Eastwood Andrews agent Andrew Crowhurst said vendors were looking for their next project after revamping the circa 1910 church at 199 Kilgour St.
The building retains its street presence with interior work devoted to installing a stunning Art Deco kitchen. But Mr Crowhurst said a lot of little things made a big impact.
“Turning the baptismal pit into a wine cellar is quite ingenious and it’s 480sq m of land, so it’s a reasonable sized block so it makes it a very liveable home with a north-facing alfresco area with a retractable cafe blind and they’ve got a lovely garden and a vegie patch and a chicken run so it makes it quite a lovely inner city residence.”
A historic chapel at 10 Little Ryrie St is suited to a variety of hospitality and commercial uses.
Darcy Jarman agent Tim Darcy has listed the property for auction on November 11.