Built by the International Order of Odd Fellows and once owned by the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes, 5 Renall Street in Auckland's Freemans Bay was a Grand Designs-style challenge for Jess Britten and her partner Warren Durling.
But the transformation of a historic space is a Britten family trait.
Jess is the daughter of the late celebrated Kiwi inventor John Britten and the sister of Isabelle Weston, whose struggles to restore Britten Stables - the Britten family home - in Christchurch featured in an episode of Grand Designs NZ in 2018.
Isabelle and her husband sold the restored Britten Stables last year to a Christchurch vet for $7.85 million - the city's highest sale price last year. Now it's Jess's turn to take her restoration work to market, with the transformed, multi-million-dollar Renall Street property now for sale.
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Jess and Warren bought the run-down Foresters’ Hall in 2015 for $1.15m with the intention of transforming it into a stylish home.
“It’s a place that everybody in the area knows, a bit of a local landmark,” Jess says.
Jess and Warren spent long hours transforming the hall into "our forever home".
5 Renall Street was in a bad shape before Jess and Warren transformed it. Now it looks amazing. Photo / Supplied
“We were very lucky because the property was actually zoned residential - in a sub-category, as a gathering venue, so getting consents wasn’t difficult and we found council really great to work with, because they and we all wanted whatever was best for the hall!”
At the start of the adventure, the couple had no children, and practically boundless energy, but as time went by, they began thinking beyond the initial changes they’d already made and enlisted Sam Atcheson of Dorrington Atcheson Architects to come up with a truly robust path forward.
Now, Jess and Warren, and their daughter Stevie, 3, and newborn son Walter enjoy a wonderful, light bright contemporary living space with loads of room for family life.
The inside of the former hall is stunning. Photo / Supplied
The stylish and airy lounge. Photo / Supplied
On the ground floor, the kitchen which has artfully refurbished 25-year-old joinery, offers the added advantage of a scullery. It’s followed by a generous storage room and a separate study.
Jess says the open-plan living, and dining area encapsulates everything that she and Warren hoped to achieve with their heart-felt project. It features soaring ceilings and many original elements that have been lovingly restored - including exposed brick walls and classic kauri aspects.
Structural changes have also created two bedrooms on the ground floor, each with an elegant zen-like ensuite, one of which is adjacent to the family bathroom – which is similarly inspired by nature.
The bedroom exudes comfort. Photo / Supplied
Britten Stables in Christchurch. Jess's sister sold the Britten family home for more than $7m last year. Photo / Supplied
On the next floor the enormous main bedroom with a chic ensuite and walk in wardrobe is the very height of luxury and an ideal place for parents to escape to.
Jess says that only the very best materials have been used throughout and explains that she and Warren are leaving the hall with a sense of sadness.
“Life changes, so with our growing family we’re moving into another phase, but we’re really proud of what we’ve achieved here.”
Bayleys agent Edward Pack, who is marketing the property, says it reminds him of a Manhattan loft, where classic features have been combined perfectly with modern design.
“Jess and Warren just love their neighbourhood and their neighbours, plus the fact that their special home is within such easy walking distance of Ponsonby Road.”
“It’s a real privilege to be marketing it for them.”
5 Renall Street, Freemans Bay, in Auckland, has a set sale date of June 2. The property has a CV of $2.45 million.
