For some people, buying a home is the beginning of a fast-paced property journey: buy, do up, sell, and move onto the next one.
For others, it’s the start of a long-term love story. Bryan and Carol’s passion project began in 1989 when they bought a bare plot of land at 76 Brick Bay Drive in Sandspit, Rodney.
“What stood out to us from day one was the view,” says Bryan.
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The vendors bought 76 Brick Bay Drive in Sandspit, Rodney in 1989 and slowly transformed it from a holiday home to a beautiful estate. Photo / Supplied
“We look down to Sandspit Wharf and up to Matakana, and it’s just a wonderful place to soak up the beauty of the world so far away from the busyness of life.”
The couple built a modest house which they used as a holiday home in the weekends. Between 1989 and 2005 when Bryan retired, they added more bedrooms, a fireplace, a large wraparound deck that takes advantage of the views, and moved parts of the home around to open it up to the surrounding gardens.
In 2005 they moved up to Sandspit fulltime, which meant more time for more work on their home.
76 Brick Bay Drive in Sandspit, Rodney has five bedrooms, five bathrooms and covered parking for eight vehicles. Photo / Supplied
They excavated under the house and put in a fully self-contained flat, built a boat shed, added a spa, and installed a wine distillery room and cellar big enough to house 1000 bottles of wine.
Producing their own wine has become a passion project all on its own. “We originally had goats on the property to keep the grass down, then because Matakana was starting to become a popular winemaking region Carol suggested we put in a vineyard.
“We didn’t know anything about wine making so we joined the local wine growers’ association and friends helped us through the first couple of harvests.
The large wraparound deck takes advantage of the views of the sea and the landscaped garden. Photo / Supplied
“Now we’ve got about 330 vines – half chardonnay, half cabernet franc.”
One special row of wines hails from the sunny Hokianga, from what’s left of the first mission house established by Bishop Pompallier, the first Catholic bishop to settle in New Zealand in the late 1830s.
Bryan and Carol have many happy memories in Sandspit. “Seventeen years ago, our son got married here, which pushed us to finish the lawn and build a pavilion where we can BBQ and play croquet.
The property has 330 vines, a wine distillery room plus a cellar big enough to house 1000 bottles of wine. Photo / Supplied
“The grandkids have loved playing in the spa pool and on the tennis court over the years and exploring the ‘secret garden’ at the bottom of the property. We used to spend a lot of time out on the water with the family too. Those were the days.”
Selling 76 Brick Bay Drive heralds the end of a 33-year ‘development of love’ as Bryan and Carol like to call it.
The vendors excavated under the house and put in a fully self-contained flat, built a boat shed and added a spa. Photo / Supplied
“Since modernising the kitchen and bathrooms, we haven’t done much over the last couple of years because it has absolutely everything we could possibly add. No one could want anything else.
“We have poured so much love and energy into this place and to be honest we don’t really want to leave. Whoever gets to call this wonderful home theirs next will want for nothing. They really won’t have to do anything.”
76 Brick Bay Drive in Sandspit, Rodney, Auckland has a set date of sale. It is being marketed by Debbie Aldred of Independent Agent Ltd.
