St Marys Bay: Religious conversion

The owner of a former Presbyterian manse has restored it with a work ethic that would make its original resident proud, writes Catherine Smith.

10 Cameron Street, St Marys Bay.

Grand kauri staircases, leadlight windows, carved wood and crystal chandeliers are not common in your typical Presbyterian manse. But this magnificent house on Cameron Street in St Marys Bay was built in the early 1900s to house the Presbyterian minister for St Stephens Church on the corner of nearby Jervois Road, and remained in church ownership until 1996.

"This house obviously creates very fond memories for the people who have lived here," says the current owner. "During the church's centenary celebration I must have had 30 previous occupants come through the house, including one lovely old gentleman born here in the 1920s."

Generations of ministers and their broods of children - one family recalled eight children tumbling around the house and garden and sliding down the magnificent kauri banister - had been hard on the gracious old house. But, with architect Douglas Patterson, the owner has meticulously restored it to Victorian splendour.

Starting at the front of the house, where the owner spent hours hand sanding the ornate fretwork around the stairs back to its original timber, the house speaks of a gentle, more considered lifestyle. From a gracious covered verandah, the kauri panelled double height lobby is entered through a leadlight glass door. Much of the original leadlighting in the windows had decayed, but the restoration has carefully reproduced it for the front door, French doors and a feature window on the staircase. Similarly, old kauri ceiling boards were milled and finished to replicate missing or damaged panels in the lobby and hall. Plaster ceilings were replicated from the Art Nouveau ones in the older parts of Auckland Girls Grammar .

The original ground floor plan house was carefully turned around: a former bedroom was extended to make an enormous eat-in country kitchen, with the old kitchen converting to a double bedroom. The new kitchen is flooded with sunshine, and opens onto extended sandstone terraces. It still features an original fireplace, now fitted with a jetmaster, as are the three other fireplaces in the house. An original built-in cupboard beside the fireplace is now fitted out for a comprehensive wine cellar - an innovation upon which the earlier Presbyterians may have frowned.

Another diversion from the austere style of the former church owners are the Swarovski crystal chandeliers in the lobby, dining room and formal living room. Elsewhere, reproduction light fittings were meticulously tracked down to suit the house, including an Art Nouveau lamp on the stairpost.

The owner took the opportunity when replacing the old verandahs upstairs and downstairs to extend them into gracious porches, perfect for summer sitting. The upper porch takes in 180 degree views from the eastern beaches to the Waitakeres and upper harbour, with Westhaven marina directly below. Needless to say, this is a favourite morning coffee spot, as it opens off both the master and one of the other three large double bedrooms.

A garden was created from the old sloping lawn, and careful terracing has been put in around a double-plus sized garage on the street front. Gracious sandstone stairs lead up to the front porch. A large terrace off the dining room and kitchen captures all day sun, and is sheltered by mature trees and a flourishing tropical garden, edged with clipped hedges. A generous strip of the back lawn has been shaped to take a pool.

After the care he took in this restoration project, the owner thinks it is time this grand old lady was put back into use for a family. It awaits a new generation of children to slide down its banisters and gather in its great family kitchen.

Vital Statistics

SIZE: Land 727sq m; house 324sq m plus 52sq m garage.

PRICE: $2.5 million plus. Set sale date September 14.

CONTACT: Jan George and Michael Best, Ray White Ponsonby, ph 027 478 4119 (Jan) or 021 682 378 (Michael).

FEATURES: Renovated two storey former manse, with sea views. Large country kitchen, formal living and dining rooms, all with fireplaces. Ground and upper floor verandahs, sandstone terraces. Security system, central vacuum, gas heating. Walking distance to Ponsonby and Herne Bay cafes and shops.

Zoned Residential 1.