Developer Dean Montgomery's mission to revive St Albans Stud

News.com.au

15 hours ago

One of Geelong finest historic homes, St Albans Homestead, found the ultimate custodian when Geelong businessman Dean Montgomery bought the property 15 years ago.
The heritage building enthusiast had long admired the remarkable 1873 estate and former stud best known for producing a direct lineage to 10 Melbourne Cup winners.
Mr Montgomery was not only determined to restore the grand 30-room mansion to its former glory but also to reclaim some surrounding land to create the sprawling country garden he felt the property deserved.
'When we bought it, it was on six acres and there was a two-and-a-half acre block next door which had been cut off by the previous owner which we then bought back off a developer who was going to turn it into these two-storey townhouses,' he says. 'We then turned that into a botanic type garden around it.
'It's a real shame to see beautiful old places like that keep getting smaller and smaller so we wanted to do the reverse of that.'
He remodelled the grounds of 6-30 Homestead Drive, St Albans Park, added a tennis court and set to work painting and repairing mortar and chimneys to turn the polychromatic brick homestead, designed by Melbourne architect James T Conlan for noted horse breeder James Wilson, into a comfortable family home.
Ornate original details have been meticulous maintained throughout the six-bedroom main residence, where an impressive 19th Century skylight towers over an elegant reception area and adjoining circular sitting room.
More than 10 open fireplaces are still in working order, while the leadlight is so impressive that an international specialist in the art recently toured the house.
A series of separate formal dining and living rooms, featuring high decorative ceilings and bay windows, are complemented by a more relaxed family room and a renovated kitchen and meals area where an old stove sits comfortably alongside modern appliances.
There's multiple access points to a large paved central courtyard that links to timber-lined space perfect for a party or billiards.
'As much as I love antiques, it was very important to my wife as well that it wasn't a museum and that it did have modern areas,' Mr Montgomery says. 'It's a big house but it doesn't feel like a mansion that you get lost in. Our children were never far away from us so it's a great family home.'
Lighting the open fireplace is always a pleasure in the main bedroom, which has access to a spacious bathroom with a claw foot bath and antique style vanity and a huge dressing room.
There's also an ensuite guest bedroom and a dedicated home office.
Another self-contained, one-bedroom guesthouse or caretaker's residence is privately positioned behind a stable complex comprising 30 stalls that's perfect for equine enthusiasts.
Whitford, Newtown agents John Moran and Peter Fort are handling the sale of 6-30 Homestead Drive, St Albans Park.
Price hopes are $7m to $7.5m.