Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams have demolished the home they bought for $24million. Photo / NZME
The multimillion-dollar waterfront home purchased by billionaire Zuru Toys sibling Anna Mowbray and ex-All Black Ali Williams has been levelled.
And in its place the couple - who the Herald reported last year had spent $24 million on the property - are set to have a massive three-level home built on their almost half-hectare waterfront site.
Documents filed with Auckland Council show they plan a six-bedroom place on their site - eight times New Zealand's average house size.
Mowbray this week posted pictures on social media of the couple in front of the existing two-level house before it was demolished, and then the pair celebrating with Champagne after it came down.
"From THIS to THAT…a new and incredibly exciting chapter begins at AJ Point. Best yet, I get to do it with these amazing people," Mowbray wrote.
The now-demolished home was built in 2009. But plans by Ponting Fitzgerald Architects reveal an extravagant three-level replacement home in the works with the fourth level as a rooftop viewing deck.
The new place will have a full basement, living areas on the ground floor and bedrooms on the top, with a lift installed to move quickly and easily between all floors. There's also a cellar, bar, and a foyer with a powder room in the plans.
The ground floor will feature extensive family entertainment areas along with dining, a formal lounge with fireplace, TV room, bike/toy storage room, mudroom and homework area, all flanked by separate areas for turning vehicles.
The architects have even thought of a storage area for four bins, along with outdoor dining beside the BBQ area and a shower and towel area near the existing in-ground pool.
An existing guest house is also noted on the plans.
On the bedroom floor, the master bedroom has a his-and-hers combined dressing room area, an en suite and is flanked by decks on two sides.
A separate office, spa and cinema room with a projector equipment anteroom are also on the plans, along with extensive upper-level decks.
The basement is to be 354sq m, ground-level 476sq m and first floor 760sq m. Exposed concrete, timber overlay flooring, tiles, carpet and natural stone are floor finishes planned.
And a rooftop deck for viewing will have a membrane roof and essentially create the fourth level.
The Herald sought comment from Anna Mowbray and Martin Green but no reply was received.
Martin Green, of consultants Green Group, applied to demolish the old place, carry out earthworks and build the new one on behalf of Williams.
The site has four pōhutukawa and one puriri tree.
Green said plans were to demolish the larger dwelling, built in 2009.
Tree removal was not proposed. Two boat sheds of similar age were also on the property, which is nearly half a hectare at 4530sq m. According to figures from Stats NZ, the average floor area of new homes consented in 2019 was 180sq m.
The site is zoned residential mixed housing suburban zone which provides for various uses, Green noted.
The new home's main living spaces face the water and comply with outlook space requirements in the district plan.
But there's a price to pay for living on the waterfront in Auckland.
"The development of this property had required that geotechnical engineering advice be sought to confirm that the development and use proposed meets acceptable standards – addressing such issues as effects on the stability and safety of surrounding land, buildings and structures," Green's application said.
The site has a history of being assessed for geotechnical matters and it is reasonable to presume that the land qualifies as one which may be subject to land instability, he said.
Auckland Council said the earthworks would be over a two-month timeframe.
An arborist must be employed to ensure compliance with tree protection. Sediment and erosion controls had to be in place, along with construction traffic management.
Masato Nakamura, resource consents principal project lead, signed off the consent on September 3, saying adequate information was supplied to consider the case.