SCHOOL ZONES:
Belmont School, Belmont Intermediate, Takapuna Grammar.
CONTACT:
Matthew Smith, 021 924 435, or Shelley Menalda, 021 190 1344, Ray White.
AUCTION:
On site, Sun, Nov 27 at 7pm.
*Plus off-street
Getting to know your neighbours is one of the great advantages of living in a quiet, laidback spot such as Aramoana Ave.
But it really paid off for Rob Keyworth and Sonya Brass when they got a tip-off that No70 might be up for sale.
Rob, a keen yachtie, hadgot to know the owner of No72 well enough that he was happy to let Rob winter over his boat in a cradle on the foreshore at the back of his property.
And that neighbour told Rob and Sonya when the owner of No70 was thinking of selling. A private deal saw the couple move up the street to the harbourside property 22 years ago.
"And it meant I didn't have to move my boat," laughs Rob.
In their time here, Rob and Sonya have modernised and improved the 1970s house and landscaped the gardens that roll down to the foreshore.
One of the first things they did was remove the carpet from the main level to expose the beautiful matai floorboards.
While they have resisted the temptation to radically alter the house, they did open up the living area and put in a staircase to connect with the downstairs level.
"We had a party one day and cut a hole in the wall to the kitchen with a Skil saw," says Sonya. "It stayed that way for a while."
These days, the whole open plan kitchen/dining/living room space enjoys the harbour views through the glazed northwestern corner of the house as well as opening to a north-facing deck that overlooks the harbour and the tidal flats between the property and Bayswater.
"You see a lot of wading birds out there," says Rob.
"And you get dotterels and godwits flying in. It's the sort of place for people that are into real nature."
Behind the living area - towards the street frontage - and up some steps to a split level are three bedrooms, a bathroom and separate laundry as well as a study/sunroom with a beautiful view up the harbour.
Image 1 of 8: Herald Homes. 70 Aramoana Ave, Devonport, Auckland. 9 November 2016 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Ted Baghurst.
Downstairs from the living area is a large lounge that Rob uses as his office. It has its own bathroom, storage tucked under the house, and opens to a covered deck that has a relaxed, boathouse feel.
A false wall conceals stairs going back up to the deck on the main level. On the opposite side of the house there is a man cave/workshop with more storage.
Sonya says when they moved in there wasn't much more than a plum tree in the backyard, which now has a variety of outdoor seating areas and a mix of natives such as pohutukawa and exotics, such as the frangipani the couple had carted around in a pot for years before it found a home here.
Wide steps lead down to the lawn, which slopes down to the shore culminating in a seating area beneath the trees and beside the water.
"This is my favourite spot to sit with a glass of wine and to watch the sunset coming through," says Sonya.
She and Rob brought up their two children here, and they loved being beside the water and fossicking around the tidal flats and mangroves. Their son would come down in the morning and catch flounder with a fly fishing rod.
"It's a great spot to bring up kids," says Sonya. "Our children learned to windsurf and kayak, and they had sailing dinghies."
"There's about a metre of water at the bottom of the garden at high tide so it's perfect for kids," says Rob.
With their children long gone, the couple are looking for another challenge with some sailing on the agenda.
