WHY WILLOW VALE MILL IS A ONE-OF-A-KIND COUNTRY ESTATE
This ‘unicorn’ property is on the market for the first time in 50 years
3 min
Half a century ago Willow Vale Mill was a crumbling ruin. However the period property’s revival became a life-long passion project for its owner, Graham Liney. Now the unique homestead is on the market for the first time in 50 years, with a price guide of $4.25 million through David Medina of Sotheby’s International Realty.
The chef and potato farmer, who pioneered an innovative “diabetic” spud now sold worldwide, bought the run down 8ha estate in 1972 and set about transforming the original 1830s flour mill into a home and hospitality residence loved by locals and city slickers alike.
Willow Vale Mill has since become a landmark property in Laggan, less than 10 minutes’ drive from the historic town of Crookwell, NSW. It has been a guest house, a function centre and on Saturday nights the venue regularly hosted a famous four-course feast.
“The property has had a colourful past. People remember it for the accommodation, the restaurant, and the Saturday night entertainment that Graham ran there for many years,” Medina said.
“But the place is now on the market as purely a private residence for someone to enjoy as a family retreat or a short term accommodation opportunity.”
As well as being home to a once-thriving guest house, the property also includes plenty of space for farming potential. Liney grew potatoes on site for decades and eventually embarked on the challenge of finding a potato suitable for diabetics and pre-diabetics. He registered the low GI spud known as the Carisma and began marketing it internationally in the 2010s. Over the years, Liney has developed more than 40 potato varieties.
Inspired by the rambling farmhouses of rural Tuscany, where Liney now lives operating a new hospitality venture, he created a grand six-bedroom main residence with a versatile floor plan over four levels with multiple living spaces inside and out. In addition, there is a separate studio space, a railway station building, and various multipurpose out houses.
“I’d love someone to revive it as an up market restaurant or wedding reception venue, but they’ll need to work on creating more accommodation. Or it would make a grand house for someone who wants a country pad. It’s ideal for someone who really loves country living with ample grounds, which took me 50 years to plant and build and grow,” Liney explained.
“My great love has always been building and gardening. I enjoy people and food, but I really love gardening so the grounds at Willow Vale are very special to me.”
Throughout the expansive grounds there is a a grand pond, a sculptured garden, a walled garden, an amphitheatre, walking trails, a walled garden and a creek complete with platypus.
Willow Vale Mill has had just five owners in almost two centuries and ceased business as a mill in the 1920s.
“It’s quite unique because it’s in good condition and ready to be transformed in someone’s dream home. I’ve looked for a mini version of it in NSW, from Cowra to Cootamundara, from Yass to Orange — I can’t find anything,” Liney added.
Medina agreed that the rare residence is a real estate unicorn; something that resembles more of a European manor and parklands than an Aussie country house.
“There’s not another one of these in the country. It’s a one-of-a-kind property that I don’t think will ever be repeated. It’s also on about 20 acres and comprises almost a quarter of the village of Laggan,” he said.
“If you want to save yourself the business class airfare, the two-and-a-half-hour drive from Sydney or 20 minutes from Canberra, this will transport you to your own private slice of Tuscany or the French provincial countryside.”
Willow Vale Mill is on the market with David Medina of Sotheby’s International Realty New South Wales.
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A rare John Beswicke-designed mansion in Hawthorn East has hit the market for the first time in over 50 years.
2 min
Just over a dozen of John Beswicke’s residential designs remain today. So, when one of his unique heritage mansions resurfaces after more than half a century off the market, it’s enough to turn some history-lovers’ heads.
A rare piece of Melbourne’s architectural past is 13 Harcourt St, Hawthorn East—previously known as Tudor House or Hilton House—which is listed for the first time in 52 years with Davide Lettieri and Nikki McCarthy of Marshall White Boroondara.
Beswicke certainly influenced Melbourne’s built environment, designing hundreds of public and private buildings between the 1870s and 1915.
A prolific designer, he is credited with creating approximately 300 buildings, including more than 200 houses, 44 commercial buildings, 14 churches, 11 hotels, nine banks, and six town halls including prominent spaces such as, Brighton Town Hall, Malvern Town Hall, Essendon Town Hall, Dandenong Town Hall, and Hawthorn Town Hall.
He called Hawthorn home, specifically Harcourt St in Hawthorn East, where he and many of his family resided. Of the houses he designed in the coveted street, 14 still stand, including Rotha, his own home at 29 Harcourt St.
In March last year, number 35 made headlines when the impressive manor named Charlton set a new street record. The restored circa-1882 Hawthorn East home on 3422 sq m with Paul Bangay gardens was set to become the suburb’s first sale above $20 million, but only just missed the mark at $19,986,888.
Before that exchange, the previous benchmark for the street was $19.5m, set in 2022 with the sale of Ellerslie, a 3340sq m estate at 16 Harcourt St.
Today, the smaller but no less impressive residence at 13 Harcourt St, which is 2114 sq m and has a price guide of $13.25 million, is on the market.
Completed around 1875, the solid brick Victorian residence features a unique chateau-inspired facade and retains many of its period finishes by Beswicke.
The home is framed by lush private parkland gardens with a fountain, rolling lawns and a backyard pool.
Beyond the elegant castle-like exterior, there are voluminous interiors, including an impressive double-arched entrance hall featuring oak parquetry floors and leadlight windows. At the front of the floor plan sits a vast sitting room with a marble fireplace and a stately library with a gas fireplace and walls of bookshelves.
The showstopper is the grand former ballroom, now a combined living and dining area. It has a double-height timber-lined vaulted ceiling, yet another marble fireplace, and arched French doors opening out to the lush north-facing grounds.
The contemporary kitchen, which also spills out onto the yard, has stone bench tops, an integrated fridge/freezer, a meals area, and a hidden laundry.
On the ground floor a self-contained wing features a bedroom with ensuite and sitting area, ideal for a primary suite or guest quarters with direct access to the gardens.
On the first floor, three more bedrooms have built-in wardrobes. They share a full family-friendly bathroom and a balcony overlooking the large front lawn.
Outdoors, there is ample room for entertaining beside with a stone terrace and solar-heated pool.
Despite its 150-year-old status, the property also features many modern conveniences such as an alarm, ducted heating, reverse-cycle air-conditioners, irrigation, storage and multiple car spaces.
The Hawthorn East home is close to Auburn amenities and station, Burke Rd trams, sought-after schools, and Rathmines Reserve.
13 Harcourt St, Hawthorn East, is on the market via private sale with Marshall White Boroondara and has a price guide of $13.25 million.
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