FAMILY TIES
A 170-year long connection with Omaha continues to this day for the owners of this long-held property, writes ROBYN WELSH
OMAHA 20 Reliance Way
4 2 2
Family ties to Omaha and the Tawharanui Peninsula run particularly deep for Denise and Brian Martin.
Certainly they extend well beyond the concrete pad that they put down for their bach in 1994, and which they extended in 2012 when they replaced it with their retirement home.
These days, looking out from their kitchen across Omaha Bay to Tawharanui, they’re reminded that Brian’s 1840s Portuguese ancestor Antonio Martin once owned the land beneath their feet, as part of his Omaha peninsula holding. Family research and published local history also confirms Antonio as one of the first European settlers to develop what is now the Tawharanui Peninsula public reserve.
“That blew us away when we discovered that. We’d never heard of it until sometime after we had moved here,” says Denise. By then Brian and Denise were well settled in their bach and Brian’s brother Brett had bought a family pad nearby. In doing so, these brothers unwittingly revitalised Martin family history by adding their own 26-year-long chapter.
Brian and Denise discovered Omaha while camping at Martins Bay. They returned to buy this section in a new subdivision at the established, north end of Omaha.
They duly built their fibrolite bach and threw themselves into the family beachside community vibe. They’d often travel up from Auckland after their children’s Saturday sport and leave early on Monday, with the kids dressed ready for school in their uniforms.
Their children later learned to drive here. Their daughter and her husband met in Omaha and were married here. “Omaha has been pretty special,” says Denise. So when Brian decided it was time to retire from his manufacturing business, it felt right that they rebuild rather than relocate.
Demolishing the bach didn’t involve any sentimental attachments.
“The guy on the digger just went straight through it all,” says Denise.
“He said he’d had the day of his life.”
Their new home featured everything that had been lacking in that bach. Where they once had two storeys, three bedrooms and one deck, they’ve now got three storeys, four bedrooms and two decks, thanks to architectural designer Martin Harnish.
They also got indoor gas and outdoor wood-burning fireplaces and American oak designer stairs. The east and west-facing decks of their midlevel lounge enabled them to fit 28 dinner guests around the table last Christmas.
Upstairs there is a media room/man cave/playroom. To the right of the front door, there’s a stand-alone boat shed that Victoria Turner of Bayleys describes as “the icing on the cake” of a stylish home with
“Omaha has been pretty special.”
“some old school charm.”
Denise and Brian may not be swapping seedlings with their neighbours much longer, but they aren’t cutting ties with Omaha just yet.
They’ll be staying in Brett’s Omaha house while they build their new home in Mahurangi West near their daughter’s family.
Sale: Auction July 29
Contact: Victoria Turner, Bayleys, 021 795 099