SCHOOL ZONES:
Victoria Avenue School, Remuera Intermediate, double grammar.
CONTACT:
Sara-Jayne Kingston, 021 767 729, or Andrew McAlpine, 021 968 809, Barfoot & Thompson.
AUCTION:
June 7.
Andrew Lush and his three siblings will hold 90 years of family history in their hearts when they sell their Remuera home.
The Scherff Rd house has been in the Lush family since 1927, when Andrew, Sally, Howard and Angela's grandparents, Douglas and Dinah Lush, bought an acre of land, which they later subdivided into three properties and sold to three of their sons.
Douglas and Dinah originally built a two-bedroom bungalow in the 1920s. Andrew says when his parents, Rod and Phyl, extensively renovated that in the 1960s, they worked with renowned architect John Goldwater, who also designed houses for the two neighbouring properties, which the other Lush families still own.
One of those properties won last year's Enduring Architecture Award and this home's renovation has also stood the test of time as five decades later it still looks good and works well.
"Growing up here was a real adventure. We not only had an enormous section of our own, but we also had eight cousins who were similar ages to us living right next door," says Andrew.
Scherff Rd runs off the bottom of Portland Rd so the Lush children had Hobson Bay and Waitaramoa Reserve - which they fondly called "the swamp" - on their doorstep as a readymade adventure playground.
"Our parents gave us enormous freedom and we roamed all over the neighbourhood. We all went to Victoria Avenue School, then Remuera Intermediate, which confused the teachers at times because there were so many of us we were hard to tell us apart."
The Lush kids played and swam at Wilson's Beach, which is at the end of Victoria Ave and has now been upgraded with planting, sculptures and a boardwalk that runs around the foreshore.
Being so close to Hobson Bay meant boats were a big part their lives and Andrew remembers his mother's quiet despair when her lounge would be seconded for weeks while kayaks were built in it.
"Our grandfather kept his launch in the bay and our father and his brothers were always building boats, which they could sail out into the Hauraki Gulf from the end of the street."
Howard has lived in the house all of his life and Andrew, Angela and Sally have all stayed there on and off as adults in recent years.
"We all have such great memories of growing up here and the house is also really convenient because it is so close to Newmarket, Parnell, Remuera and Orakei."
The 1960s renovation included creating three more bedrooms, a bigger, light-filled kitchen and dining room, which open to a deck that overlooks a tiered, north-facing garden.
The garden still has many of the rhododendrons and fruit trees that Phyl and Rod planted including a feijoa, an avocado, a macadamia and citrus trees. It is a quiet, private spot that could recapture more of its magic with some tender love and care.
The two-storey house also has pleasant, elevated views across neighbouring rooftops from its main level, which includes three bedrooms, a study, the lounge, kitchen, dining room, sun room and a landing with stairs leading up to a fourth bedroom.
On the downstairs level are the entrance lobby, which has striking rimu panelling, a fifth bedroom, a large workshop and a laundry, which opens to the garden.
As well as being double-grammar zoned, the house is close to great local shops, cafes and reserves including Thomas Bloodworth Park on Shore Rd, which also has a good bus route.
Andrew says now that he and his three siblings have moved or are moving to various parts of Northland, it is time to sell.
