Character home with city, sea views
Three generations of Leuthart family ownership has refined a suburban New Plymouth property, creating a private, elevated retreat looking across the city.
Present owners Bern and Kat appreciated the improvements in the weeks of Covid-19 lockdown last year. ‘‘We felt a bit spoiled,’’ Bern says. ‘‘There were not too many reasons to leave.’’
Bern’s Swiss-born grandparents bought the property at 533 Devon St West back in 1938 after they sold their Stratford cake shop and moved to New Plymouth.
The home was built in 1925 in Mission style with wide verandahs supported by sturdy columns, and enjoyed rural seclusion with 11 acres of land around it.
Despite the subsequent growth of the city around it, subdivision of the original property and the development of the Blagdon shopping centre nearby, this home still enjoys a real sense of peace and privacy. That comes with its elevation above the neighbourhood and its frame of established trees and gardens.
The property is named Pukemarama, meaning ‘hill of light’ and it makes sense when you visit here.
The driveway rises from the corner of Devon St West and Stuart Place to generous parking areas at the side of the house, which embraces expansive views to the sea and inland to the mountain.
The house is much larger than the original bungalow, after an extension of the downstairs living areas and development of extra bedrooms upstairs by Bern’s father Max, a well-known city builder and businessman.
Character features were kept where possible. Most impressive is the ornate plaster ceiling in the original lounge off the foyer entry. It’s a bit like looking up into a white wedding cake, which Bern’s grandfather seemingly appreciated with his baking and chocolatier background.
The room is larger now for easy family living; it was opened up when Max removed walls between this space, a smaller sitting room behind, and a sun room to the side. The original bay window in here frames a view over the front lawn and in-ground concrete-and-tile pool to that eyecatching sea outlook. The pool has an easy-to-run, salt-water filter system.
It’s logical why the weeks of lockdown here were comfortable for Bern and Kat.
The kitchen-dining area was created by Max from the original front bedroom. He pushed its bay window out into the verandah area to gain the extra space.
Bern and Kat’s major enhancement in their three years here is the new kitchen, a contemporary galley design with feature black wall tiles that sit comfortably against the white-painted brickwork of Max’s 1970s alterations.
Also downstairs is a guest bedroom with ensuite, a family bathroom, and two more bedrooms. Upstairs are the master bedroom with ensuite and walk-in wardrobe, another bedroom, and a living area. The master and living area open to a balcony that wraps around the corner of the house and captures enhanced views.
A small cottage behind the double garage at the back of the house was once both a storage area and a play space for grandchildren but now offers a bedroom and ensuite with serious teenager appeal.
Bern and Kat changed the grounds, replacing 150 roses with more easily managed semi-tropical plants and fruit trees that relish the sunny setting, along with new vegetable gardens, and a pizza oven and barbecue area. ‘‘It’s very easy to maintain now,’’ Bern says.