Space to spread out, live and play
Kids have their own zones in this spacious three- level hideaway close to town, writes Catherine Smith
Nobody could have been more surprised than Donna Holroyd when she was house hunting in Remuera three years ago. “I’m a farm girl. We’d come down the driveway to the open house and I could hear sheep,” she says. “I thought, ‘ what a good idea to have a recording of sheep’. Strange, but, it sounded like home. That’s what sold it to me. And then I realised we were right by a park, and the sheep were real. This valley is a significant ecological area, there’s bush and creek down the other side.”
The family of four children approaching teenage years, three dogs and a cat were looking for somewhere spacious so that the kids could spread out, the dogs could run around and with plenty of privacy and seclusion, but close to town. They found plenty of room all right — the three- level house is a spacious 386sq m, the land just under 2400sq m, and a wilderness one would not expect in the heart of the blue- chip suburb. The two boys, now 19 and 12, would disappear into the bush to catch eels, the family revelled in the seclusion where all you could hear was the sound of birds.
The concrete block, brick, and Eterpan fibre cement board ( with a 50- year guarantee) house had been built in 1993, with additions made around 2006. Donna loves that the bedrooms are spread out on three levels, so parents and kids have their own zones. From the private driveway, the entry
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level is the middle of the house. The warm, golden oak parquet is original in the lobby and informal areas — Donna loves its patina. She has recarpeted through the rest of the bedrooms and living room. She also added central heating, finding New Zealand houses cold after nearly two decades in London.
From the Poggenpohl kitchen on the main floor, there are a couple of steps down to the main living room, opening on to one of three surround terraces. From here you get the first treetop glimpses of the bush and valley beyond the house.
There is a spacious bedroom suite on this level, self contained from the rest of the living spaces, but sharing the sunny terrace. Donna had planned to open the kitchen out to the living room and the view, but circumstances have changed and that opportunity is now available for the next family to make their changes.
There’s also another large double room that is used as a study, opening to a private front courtyard. Upstairs, there’s a palatial master suite, with its own terrace that is a perfect spot to gaze around the valley.
Neighbours are nearby, but each house faces away from the other for inner- city privacy. Skylights flood the area with light.
Double rooms for two of the kids share a Jack and Jill bathroom, while on the ground floor there’s a bedroom with shower room. This zone was a hit with the teens and all their friends. The kids congregate downstairs in the huge rumpus/ games room ( there’s even a wet bar, left by the previous owners) and tumble around the terrace beside the pool, while upstairs grown- ups can dine on the terrace and keep an eye on things.
Gatherings of 30 adults and 30 or more kids were happily accommodated through the house.
Donna’s not sure where the family will move next — she’s not expecting such a lucky find of countryside right in the middle of the inner suburbs — but says another family can have the fun of making this spread their own.