20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
This Torrens Park home offers a great family lifestyle and the illusion of living in the bush despite being set in Adelaide’s leafy foothills and within easy reach of handy amenities.
Professor Paul Worley’s late parents Don and Barbara Worley built the home, moving into it in 1974.
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“They had wanted to live in the hills, but with mum’s paraplegia, that was virtually impossible to do on a sloping steep hills block, so they thought on the banks of the Brown Hill Creek was like living in the Hills but on the edge of the city,” Mr Worley says.
20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
“It’s as close as you can get to the city and still feel like you’re in a bush setting. With the creek running right by, and yet being a stone’s throw from Mitcham Shopping Centre and all the public transport options you could need and a range of fantastic public and private schools, they saw it as an ideal location. Dad’s uncle was a well-known architect in Sydney, Bryce Mortlock, and they were really looking to design something that was very contemporary for the time.
20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
“It’s an iconic example of that really popular mid-century modern architecture with the brick walls, exposed beams and timber-lined ceilings. Because Mum had become a paraplegic through a car accident five years prior, it needed to be a house where Mum essentially could be normal and where there was no compromise in the way she could live, the way she could be a mother and a hostess. They wanted a house where the kids’ friends would come to, rather than us go elsewhere and they wanted it to be a place where they could entertain people.
“The great thing about this home is when people walk in they don’t see it as a home designed for a person with a disability, they see it as a fantastically enjoyable home. It just so happens it works really cleverly for everyone.”
20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
The home, set on a 939sqm allotment, offers two levels of glamorous mid-century modern living. The upper floor is designed for living and entertaining and features four bedrooms and a spacious study nook. The master suite boasts a walk-in robe and opens to an ensuite with a shower, a toilet and a vanity unit.
The kitchen – complete with stainless steel appliances – is the heart of the floorplan, opening to a spacious casual meals and family room at one side, and a more formal open-plan living and dining room at the other.
20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
“None of the kitchen cupboards have handles, they all work on a push-touch mechanism from back in the 70s, so the soft-close feature that’s so popular now – we had that back then,” Mr Worley says.
Both of these living spaces open out to a spacious balcony area for alfresco entertaining.
“We hosted very large parties here with well over 100 people on a regular basis – 21sts, engagements, wedding anniversaries – it was very much a place where, with all the different rooms, you could have a lot of people enjoying themselves,” Mr Worley says.
20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
The lower level features a tiled indoor pool, a double garage and ample storage space.
“We’ve seen generations grow up learning to swim down in that pool, and everyone always wanted to come over here to have fun and connect around the pool,” Mr Worley says.
With both Mr Worley’s parents having passed away, the time has come for another family to “fire up the Weber in the courtyard”.
20A Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
“I lived there for quite a time and remember being woken up by birds, because being near the creek there’s plenty of birdlife around and it was a fantastic place to enjoy being a part of nature – it was a great family home and would be great for another family,” Mr Worley says. “This place has been enjoyed by five generations – Mum and Dad’s parents were often there, then Mum and Dad, our generation, our kids and our grandchildren. They’ve all enjoyed it. We felt we were very fortunate to have lived here, looked after it and to now pass it on to another family.”
20a Ayr Avenue, Torrens Park. Supplied by Clique Creative
20a Ayr Ave, Torrens Park
Contact agent for price
Agent: Klemich Real Estate, Bonnie Whyte 0409 300 195. Land size: 939sqm. Offers: Close Wednesday, September 30 at noon.
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