School drop- off dramas? Not here

This renovated family villa has more than can be gauged from the street, writes Graham Hepburn

There were no open home or auction hassles for the Chrisp family when they bought their Herne Bay home 15 years ago. Wendy Chrisp had become friends with one of the owners through working on a Plunket committee so already knew and liked this Emmett St home.

“We were living in Clifton St but we needed a bigger house,” says Wendy. “And she was heavily pregnant and just wanted to sell the house through a private sale so it was quick and easy. We’d been talking about buying it off them for more than a year and I had spent a lot of time here so I knew we would love it.”

The previous owners had already renovated the early 1900s villa, which had been divided into flats, so that it was ideal for family living. With Ponsonby Primary just down the road, Wendy and Stuart knew their two pre- schoolers had their futures sorted.

And when they did go to school, Wendy says, they didn’t have to deal with the daily hassle of driving and school drop- off and pick- up dramas.

“I could watch them from the front bedroom walking off to school,” Wendy says. “Although when they were little I would follow a way behind them just to make sure they were okay.”

From the street, the villa conceals its true dimensions, something that Wendy likes.

“It doesn’t look like much from the roadside but inside it is an explosion of colour and light,” she says. At the front are two sunny north- facing bedrooms, one with a fold- down bed and an office annexe behind folding doors. Off the office, through french doors, is a deck on the northwestern corner that sits over the garage.

“This room was great when we had people staying because they could have their own space, and my husband used to work from home so the office was ideal for him.”

Further up the hallway is another bedroom and opposite that, down another hallway, which has access to the lined attic, is the main bathroom.

Although the home has been modernised in

4 2

2 EMMETT ST, HERNE BAY SIZE: PRICE GUIDE: AUCTION: INSPECT: SCHOOL ZONES: CONTACT: ON THE WEB: * Plus off street parking. stages it still has character features such as ceiling roses and board- and- batten ceilings.

Occupying the southeastern corner of the house, the master bedroom has an en suite and dressing room, and opens out to the back yard.

The open- plan living area is more modern but still has a working fireplace to supplement the central heating.

Wendy says that as well as installing the central heating they added more storage with fitted wardrobes in some of the bedrooms.

Outside they created the living space in the back yard that has a Louvretech roof, roll- up plastic blinds and built- in seating that also acts as storage.

They also planted along the back boundary of the garden for privacy.

The kitchen, with its stainless- steel benches, has a servery out to the outdoor area, which Wendy gave a nautical theme.

“I loved this kitchen,” says Wendy. “The kids could have their birthday parties out the back and friends would be sitting at the breakfast bar having a wine. And from here you could keep an eye on all the areas where the kids could get up to mischief.”

Wendy adds that in the afternoon the living space, with its west- facing windows, is flooded with sunlight.

The Chrisps moved to Remuera about five years ago and have rented the house to long- term tenants but feel now is the right time to sell.

“It’s been an amazing family home,” says Wendy. “Now it needs to be passed on to someone else.”