38 Alister Street, Fitzroy North VIC 3068

Owner's reflections about living in this house

When we bought this house in 1988 it was because it combined every urban advantage with ready access to vast natural space.

We saw ourselves as particularly fortunate to have secured one of the rare Mid-Century Modernist designed houses built in this area in the 1950s.

The house was built in 1958 from a set of plans for a modernist house, plans modified by the owner builders to accommodate the sloping site. We undertook renovations in 1996 and 2002/3. Our desires for these renovations were interpreted and planned by Paul Gardiner https://gardinerarch.com.au/ , an architect with a brilliant capacity to organise living space. If you count the large shed that the original owner builders had lived in while they built the house, the house is still within the footprint of the original buildings.

We loved living in this spacious house with flexible spaces filled with natural light. There are separate spaces and enough bathrooms to accommodate family or guests, all with unimpeded personal space. I loved to have members of our extended families sitting around our 14 seat table for family occasions. It is one of the delights of the house that there was room for large gatherings.

Life has been interesting in a house where each room designated a bedroom in the advertising may have been at some time an office, a textile workroom, a teenage bed sit, a country relative’s temporary city accommodation, or even a refuge for a whole neighbouring family forced out of home temporarily by building works. The whole house was a library, and most of it a computing workspace. There were bookcases on every available wall and five active ethernet connected workstations before we started to move out.

In the last couple of years watching the screen showing the flow of power from the solar panels has proved endlessly fascinating and a handy guide as to when to turn on the dishwasher and the washing machine. The excess power generated during sunny days has been sufficient for us to have planned adding a battery.

Having a primary school aged child able to walk to school right from the start is a wonderful thing. All the aggravation of transport and school drop off was avoided, and friendships flourish in the neighbourhood. Our Millennial child is still close friends with adults he first met at school as a 5 year old. The opportunity for children to develop independent out of school friendships is a priceless feature of our good neighbourhood

I am writing this sitting at the kitchen table as a pair of Eastern Thornbills collect nectar from the fuchsia outside. Just last week a resident blue tongue lizard was sighted basking in the sun on the front steps. Previously the lizard has been seen at the back of the house. Is it one lizard or a family? Hard to tell, but these are just a couple of examples of wild residents or visitors from the rewilded corridor of the Merri Creek.

House Features:

Excellent climate control with:

Hydronic heating throughout

Split system cooling and heating

Open fireplace with Jetmaster insert for burning efficiency

Double glazing on more recent windows and doors

Internal and external blinds

Energy saving features:

Recently installed roof mounted solar panels

Direct solar hot water system

Rain water bladder and tanks with pump. Taps to front and back gardens.

Working and living features:

Garage with power connected and remote controlled doors

‘Valet' built in vacuum cleaner

Multiple ethernet connections throughout the house.

Generous provision of power outlets