The planning and Construction of Garden Court, Wheelers Hill. Design : McLauchlan and Associates of Mount Waverley and Construction by Alamode Constructions of Pattersons Lake

We purchased the site of our new home in Wheelers Hill in Febrary, 2015 with settlement scheduled for May, 2015. 

Following our return home from our holiday in the USA and specifically our time visiting with Bonnie and Gil in San Antonio, we were both convinced of the need to move, downsize and eliminate stairs as well as the size of the garden.  We approached our agent Merelyn, who had a property further down our street for auction, which Ken liked but Merelyn and Jeanette both knew it wasn't what we were wanting and needing, but she said she did have another property in the "dress circle" of Wheelers Hill that was just about to be put on the market.  Jeanette and I visited in early February 2015 and Jeanette immediately realised the potential, but there was a lot of work required.  Ken also liked the area and the size of the property at 870sq metres, but was not sure of the numbers.  We had our architect Rob McLauchlan visit, and he said you could demolish and rebuild or proceed with a substantial renovation using most of the existing shell but adding substantially and gutting the interior.

This was a challenging time, we did preliminary work on each alternative, but in the short term realised that 75 % the roof and the outer walls could be retained. Rob taking the initiative then totally redesigned the whole house and we decided to leave the back 2 bedrooms in tact and make cosmetic changes to the interior of those rooms, whilst totally demolishing the interior throughout the rest of the home.

After some 8-10 weeks of reviews and considering various alternate designs we departed upon our holiday to Northern Australia and the Kimberleys, whilst Rob put our renovation / rebuild out to tender with 5 different builders.  We kept in touch and he warned us that several were saying this was substantially bigger than we originally planned. Upon returning to Melbourne he presented us with a summary of the tender outcomes and a suggestion that we interview 2 builders, who are somewhere near our desired spend, but he also knows their work and quality.  At the same time we visited a Melbourne based high quality builder, known to Ken through golf at Kew, to gauge the quality and finish standards that our architect is specifying as a minimum.  It was very worthwhile and we came away well pleased.

Subsequently, we met the two preferred builders and we liked Dean from Alamode and Rob was happy to progress to tender/ contract negotiations.  In addition, we had to define the contract issues and then specify the variations / additions outside the formal contract.  We agreed to details and then signed a contact with a development timeline of 27 weeks from commencement date of early October, 2015.

Jeanette then had to follow through and complete selection of colour schemes and fittings, before we were to embark upon our holiday in October / November  , 2015.  All went well, but upon our return from overseas, Rob advised that we need to consider a major and expensive change to the Windows on the Southern and Western sides of the home.  We subsequently, met and agreed these changes with Dean and Rob, but this delayed work over the December / January period by 3 weeks.  All proceeded well, if not as quickly as we wanted.  Settlement on 13 Caithness occurred to timetable and we became tenants from 8 December, 2015.

We then experienced that frustrating period where you move from all of the internal work of electrical and plumbing.  But we were to receive another frustrating and expensive item of expenditure, when the new boiler was installed for the in floor hydronic heating, only to then ascertain that the manifolds in the new extension of the Master bedroom suite and the manifold at the rear required replacement and updating.  This proved both expensive and time consuming. 

Finally, as much work was rushed and progressed, we were advised that we could move in Mid May, 2015 but that quickly led to the realisation that this would necessitate a period of hotel accommodation beyond the 8th May 2015 our final date on the lease. So despite our planning and the detailed inventory of boxes and furniture, we had to have 9 nights in Hotels, before we moved in. 

It wasn't what we wanted but it was beyond the control of Dean and his team.

So we moved in to a home still substantially a work in progress.  There was a bevy of activity as various items were finished.  We still had ongoing issues with the hydronic heating which wasn't commissioned until some 3 weeks after our moving in, but we are in and really delighted. 

There remains a myriad of items to finish, but the quality is as we wanted , both the design and layout is superb and there are no steps apart from the front door/ porch and back door and pool fence step. 

The  sandstone paving s a significant feature, as is glass wall in the formal dining / Lounge area.  The front water feature is still to be finalised in design prior to construction.

The garden will be a work in progress although the watering system is near complete, the front garden is also nearly finished in the planning and now requires execution of the build. The solar panels are on the roof, the water tanks will be installed next week.  The pool security fences are to be installed over the next 10 days, then we will instal the three gates.  The gates are one of the last items because they have to comply with firstly, the security requirements with the pool, both rear and front, then the front gate has to be placed between the side entrance to the garage and the second pool security / safety gate. 

We do have some blinds and window coverings but the balance of curtains and blinds come next week. 

We also have a range of cabinetry still to be delivered for fitout to our walk in robe, garage storage and the shed.  There remains much unpacking of boxes and other items, but we are remarkably settled for such a short time.  We then move on to the internal decoration, where whilst we are well established after some 8 weeks in the home, there is a need for assistance, guidance and support from a quality interior designer and decorator.

This has been a challenging and tiring project to renovate and rebuild a home which will give us the environment and living style for hopefully the next 15 years or so. 

We now have a property in a very good area, with quality design and fit out to our desire and planning.  The build is of an excellent standard with high quality finishes.  The plans and floor layout is comfortable, with good quality fittings throughout.It does meet our aspirations, has been completed close to a demanding budget without compromise as to quality or scale.  A good architect with a quality builder have delivered.  We are delighted.