WA’s grandest mansion faces demolition
Western Australia’s most expensive mansion could soon be demolished in favour of a new luxury property.
Western Australia’s most expensive mansion could soon be demolished in favour of a new luxury property. Mineral Resources chief executive Chris Ellison is looking to demolish his 7564sq m mansion in Perth’s Mosman Park, bought for $57.5m from iron ore heiress Angela Bennett a decade ago. The sale was the ninth most expensive transaction in Australian residential history. The house includes a cinema, three separate buildings, a private jetty and tennis court. Ellison has lodged plans to replace the existing five-level house with a seven-level structure including a gym with a sauna and steam room. But in a seeming nod to planning regulators, Ellison’s new structure, with four above-ground levels, would be nearly 3m lower than the existing building. Chris and wife Tia also want to demolish a two-level house on one of the two neighbouring properties they bought for $11.6 m nearly six year’s ago. There have been a couple of objections to the plans, which include a two-level structure for guests to be built near an existing gatehouse to the main mansion. It would have four bedrooms, swimming pool and a cellar.
Fashionable transformation
High-profile fashion designer Rebecca Vallance and her investor husband David Gasan have lodged plans for a four-level palatial mansion in Sydney’s Vaucluse. The couple paid $4.45m for the Hopetoun Avenue site in February 2018 through Sean Jacobson of 1st City Double Bay real estate and have lodged plans with Woollahra Council to demolish the existing house. Initial estimates put the building, designed by Archer Design, at a minimum of $3.524m, including landscaping and site works on the 986sq m site. Vallance was previously a fashion publicist before venturing into fashion design. Gasan is the managing director of Bamford Capital.
No more horsing around
Having spent more than $30m on his horse racing facility Macedon Lodge since he purchased it in 2005, Lloyd Williams has again put it on the market with price expectations of between $20m and $30m. The training ground for four Melbourne Cup winners is being offered to the market as Williams says he is too old to manage the property. “I am on the verge of 80 and that’s the reason why I am selling it,” Williams says. “Over the past 14 years I have lived at Macedon Lodge and supervised everything but more recently I have found it impossible to devote the time and energy required.’’ CBRE’s Mark Wizel and Magic Millions Sales managing director Barry Bowditch are handling the marketing campaign. The 120ha property was the training base for champions including Ethereal which won the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups in 2001, and champion sprinter and sire of Black Caviar, Bel Esprit. The facility has regularly housed up to 100 horses, has more than 15km of tracks, a 75m horse pool, 75 boxes, 25 grass day yards, 20 spelling paddocks, a water-walker, and a specialised lighting facility for convalescing horses. Expressions of interest close in March.
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