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Grand Designs NZ (2025) S09E05
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00:00When you were small, I bet your significant elders took you on adventurous excursions
00:07to appreciate the view.
00:10Except of course, you didn't really appreciate it, did you?
00:14Perhaps you thought, how boring.
00:19Once you get older though, things change and you'll go to great efforts for a good view.
00:26But it's not just the view that attracts us, there's something more at play here.
00:30You see, deep in the human psyche, we're looking for a vantage point to survey our surroundings,
00:36to find safety and security.
00:39And with that high ground, there's more than just a little bit of prestige.
00:44And that's why people want to build like this, often at significant costs.
00:50But architecture should be about stretching the boundaries, reaching for the skies.
00:56If the only thing is, you might just end up with your head in the clouds.
01:03Dunedin is a city of character, of history, of knowledge and learning, all set in a stunning
01:31natural environment.
01:38Jamin Hardestat and Cindy Hall have been living in Dunedin for the last 25 years, a world
01:44away from where they were born and raised.
01:48Indiana is the state that I'm from, which is known as a part of the Bible Belt of the
01:55US and lots of corn and soybean fields and flat as.
02:00Cindy and Jamin met while studying psychology in Washington, DC.
02:04Both graduated with PhDs, but with employment hard to find in the US, they started looking
02:10further afield.
02:14This job came up in New Zealand and I don't think we knew where New Zealand was at the
02:17time, but that definitely sounded like the most exotic place.
02:21I don't think we thought we would stay here like our whole lives.
02:25Before you know it, it's, you know, 25 years later.
02:28They quickly put down roots, buying a villa on the city side of Otago Harbour near Port
02:34Chalmers, starting a family and settling into their careers.
02:42Nowadays Jamin is head of the psychology department at Otago University and Cindy runs a private
02:48clinical psychology practice.
02:50Their two sons have grown up and moved into town, leaving their parents to consider making
02:55a change themselves.
02:59I had this dream when I was a little kid, growing up on a farm, that I was going to
03:03live somewhere with the ocean in front of me and a mountain behind me.
03:08I said to Jamin, I have this idea, what do you think about maybe selling and building
03:17a new house?
03:20Cindy went further, finding a harbourside section for sale at nearby St Leonard's.
03:25Still it wasn't quite her dream site.
03:29I said to Jamin, it's a really beautiful spot, it's really, really nice, but I'd like the
03:33one on the top, because that would be fantastic, wouldn't it?
03:38And then Jamin and I actually hiked up the hill to get up there and looked at the views
03:43and it was just, that was the one.
03:49Cindy and Jamin decided to take the plunge and now there's no going back.
03:54We sold the beautiful villa to partially finance the new house and now we're renting in town
04:00until the house is ready.
04:01I feel like we took this very big risk in a way, I thought we wanted to try something
04:08new, a new kind of adventure for the two of us and so we just went for it.
04:15Their plan hasn't got universal approval though.
04:18The younger members of the family are openly sceptical.
04:22Building an entire house from scratch is a pretty crazy undertaking, even when you're
04:27not sort of working a very, very high intensity job.
04:31I think that it's going to be harder for them than they think it is.
04:45What an astonishing view.
04:47Some very lucky people here.
04:49How are you?
04:52Jamin.
04:53Hi, good to meet you.
04:54You too and Cindy.
04:55Hi, nice to meet you Tom.
04:56Hi, you too and what a fantastic piece of coastline.
04:59I could look at that all day.
05:01Yeah, well that's the plan.
05:02Right.
05:03Not going to leave, ever.
05:04People come to us.
05:05Probably won't be able to afford to leave.
05:08It's a steep site.
05:09Yes.
05:10Yeah, it's very, it's long and narrow.
05:12We designed a version initially that was, that was tall and squat, but it involved taking
05:17out a huge piece of the hill.
05:19So we redesigned and now it's, now it's skinny, but it's a long walk from one end to the other.
05:25Right.
05:26A long house.
05:27Yes.
05:28A long house.
05:30Building a long house here needs a long retaining wall, 80 meters long in fact, and up to four
05:35meters high.
05:37Enter the living wing through an oversized rolled steel front door.
05:41The stud here is a massive 6.3 meters at its highest point.
05:47Showcasing the view is a wall of framed glass in the mountain modern architectural style,
05:52while outside decking runs the length of the whole wing.
05:56A supersized entertainer's kitchen features a four meter long black granite island, a
06:01restaurant style pantry and a cozy breakfast nook right by the view.
06:06A double sided fireplace warms the lounge and Cindy's office library, featuring a domed
06:11ceiling and fresco designed by Sun Percy.
06:15The generous master bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and en suite leads out to a private deck with
06:20a hot tub for two.
06:22The living wing also includes a large laundry, an American style mudroom and a bathroom.
06:28Following the curve of the hill, the garage wing contains a spacious media room, bathroom,
06:34two guest bedrooms, Cindy's music and crafts room and a two car garage.
06:42Cladding is a combination of steel and timber and the gable roof is higher than you'd normally
06:46see in New Zealand.
06:47In fact, everything about this house is big, American big, proving perhaps you can take
06:54the couple out of the US, but not the US out of the couple.
06:59We think we've come up with something that's going to be really cool.
07:03What are the gems for you in this house?
07:06Well, I have to give credit to my sister who had the idea for the domed ceiling.
07:11A domed ceiling in the library?
07:13Yeah, in the library.
07:16We kind of like things that are a little different, a little quirky.
07:19Our oldest kid and one of my friends who's in art school are going to fresco it for us.
07:26So I'm excited about that.
07:28The living room has got a massive open wood fire.
07:32So you hope to spend...
07:33Yeah, I honestly, I don't, I don't know.
07:37We budgeted about 1.4 million.
07:41Really?
07:421.4?
07:43That doesn't seem like enough.
07:46I feel like I'd be really happy if we came in under 1.6.
07:51Under 1.6.
07:52Well, it's a big house.
07:54Yeah.
07:55Yeah.
07:56Good luck with that.
07:57Yeah.
07:58Yeah.
07:59When do you hope to finish?
08:00I'm hoping that 10 months to a year of actual building, of the construction of the house.
08:07That's what I was sort of imagining in my mind.
08:09Okay.
08:10And this is the first house you've built?
08:12Yeah.
08:13First and yeah, and probably only, I'm sure.
08:15Well, you...
08:16I mean, that's our goal.
08:17So a lot of hope, dreams, energy, money.
08:21I think it's an ambitious plan for the budget that you have, but I wish you the very best
08:26of luck.
08:27Thanks.
08:34Cindy and Jamin's mountain modern home is going to be quite some undertaking.
08:38A complex design on a steep and exposed site.
08:42And it's their first build.
08:45No baby steps here.
08:47It's going to be a bit like trying to climb Everest on your first hike.
08:51I certainly wouldn't be brave enough to do it, but I think these two are.
08:57I want to be supportive at this early stage, but alarm bells are already ringing.
09:05The budget is fantastic and not in a good way.
09:09And the timeframe, 10 to 12 months, is far-fetched.
09:13Bravery alone won't be enough to get these two over the line.
09:17They'll need all the help they can get.
09:21I came to meet Jamin and Cindy through a builder that I know.
09:27He called me up one day and said, hey, I've got some American clients, they want to do
09:31a house up on the hill.
09:32He said, they've got some pretty out there ideas, see how you go with them.
09:38And that was the start.
09:40Alison certainly had her work cut out for her.
09:45Because it's such a steep site, we need a massive retaining wall.
09:50And because there's some underlying rock, we can't do giant round timber piles.
09:58So that left us with doing a gabion basket-type wall.
10:04Any 80-metre long retaining wall up to 4 metres high is a very expensive undertaking, especially
10:10on this site.
10:12Even so, when the builder's estimate for the whole project comes through, it's far beyond
10:17what anyone expected.
10:19We had a little bit of a setback.
10:22The estimate turned out to be about $4.3 million.
10:29I just put my head in my hands and went, oh, how do I bring them back from that?
10:36I actually couldn't believe it.
10:38I was expecting it to be high, but not that high.
10:41I think it was 600 truckloads of dirt they were imagining they would have to take out.
10:47And 300 truckloads of rocks to bring in to build the wall that was at some point going
10:52to have to be 4 metres high.
10:55So it's like basically building your own mountain to accommodate the house.
11:01I definitely thought, yeah, this is a fantasy, as opposed to a dream that's going to come.
11:10The figures do not lie.
11:12Cindy and Jamin were hoping to spend no more than $1.6 million.
11:17$4.3 million is out of the question.
11:21So all options are on the table.
11:24They have to be.
11:26So the idea is that we bring the house up in elevation by about a metre, so bring it
11:32up out of the ground.
11:34But the other thing we need to do was to slim the house down so that it stretches across
11:39less number of contours, because the more contours it stretches across, the more we've
11:43got to either dig out or retain it or form a foundation for it at the front.
11:49And you can see all of this suddenly we don't have to make room for.
11:52Behind.
11:53Behind, that's right.
11:55So we can just bring that wall down closer to the house.
11:59If anything that reduces the Great Wall of Dunedin is good.
12:04Professionally, I'd be recommending a complete redesign.
12:08Whatever happens, it will have to be radical.
12:11Perhaps you reduce the size of the house, or you don't build one wing of the house until
12:18the following year or something.
12:20Or don't have a garage and a powder room and.
12:23Yeah.
12:24Sadly, it appears the only way to save the project is to demolish the dream.
12:30Like I had named my children before they were conceived, I also had this house planned,
12:35decorated, everything.
12:38Years ago at the beginning.
12:40So it's really, really hard to not even be in a place where we think we can even start.
12:48Yeah, OK.
12:50I just think it's over, like we're not it's not going to happen.
13:03It's now eight months since I first met Cindy Hall and Jamin Halberstadt on their section
13:08high above Otago Harbour in Dunedin.
13:12And in all that time, there's been no building at all.
13:16Not here anyway.
13:19All those other people have houses.
13:21Yeah, it does seem like we've fallen behind a bit.
13:24Well, those two hadn't even bought the sections when we bought the section.
13:28I know.
13:30And ours is looking still a little.
13:31There's no hers.
13:34There's also no chance of it starting any time soon.
13:38With the builder's estimate of $4.3 million and the couple's budget a mere $1.6 million,
13:44obviously something's got to give.
13:48So far, that hasn't been Cindy.
13:53I can't think of anything I don't want.
13:55Like we want that cantilevered deck.
13:57So we basically are just looking over all that down there and just straight out to the
14:01view.
14:02It's just full view.
14:04Compounding their problems, there's a construction boom going on, a shortage of tradespeople
14:10and the price of materials is going through the roof.
14:14I guess we could always get a tiny house or a whole, maybe a whole village of tiny houses.
14:21No.
14:22For the price of the...
14:23No.
14:24For the price of that estimate, we could probably build a little city.
14:27No.
14:28We've got to figure out a way to get the house that we want, Jayme.
14:32But while the lack of progress is frustrating, one part of the project is providing a welcome
14:38distraction.
14:41Where the house actually sits and all around it has been sheep paddock for, I don't even
14:47know, maybe decades.
14:48Who even knows?
14:49And Jayme and I are really serious about bringing our section back to what it originally was,
14:53what it's meant to be.
14:54We want to have the native plants and the native wildlife all around.
14:59So that's the goal.
15:01Inspired by the large scenic reserve above the property, Cindy and Jayme have prepared
15:05a detailed native planting plan.
15:08That could be very expensive, but Cindy, who had a huge garden at her previous house, aims
15:13to do it for next to nothing.
15:17I go around collecting seeds wherever I can and just see what I can grow.
15:23You know, we're not going to change the direction of global warming.
15:27You know, we're not going to repopulate New Zealand in all of its native flora and fauna.
15:33That's disappearing.
15:34But we can do our little bit.
15:36Of course, the priority is actually building on the site.
15:40And that means tough decisions have to be made on reducing the astonishing estimated
15:44cost of the whole house.
15:52Advising on how that could possibly be done, Cindy's mother, aunt and niece are calling
15:57in from the United States.
15:58I love you, Jayme.
15:59I would take out the music craft room, and that would smooth it up, then make it shorter.
16:06But where am I going to do my crafts?
16:08In the kitchen.
16:11In the kitchen?
16:13No, no.
16:16Clearly, compromise is not a concept Cindy readily embraces.
16:21Yeah, was there like loft space?
16:24Yeah, there was.
16:25Well, that was going to be storage.
16:28But you don't need storage.
16:30Anything you put up there, just get rid of it.
16:33You won't see it again after you put it up there anyway.
16:39It doesn't sound like much progress is being made.
16:42It's more an exercise in moral support.
16:45$4.25 million.
16:48That's ridiculous.
16:50You shouldn't have to pay that for this very nice house.
16:53I think it's way overpriced on their end.
16:57You're going to get your house, Cindy.
16:59Just hang in there.
17:06By June 2022, it's a full 16 months since I first met Cindy and Jayme.
17:12And lo and behold, their build is finally underway.
17:17Look, you can see the end of the platform.
17:20Oh my gosh.
17:22We got building consent, what, like 10 days ago?
17:25Yeah, we finally got building consent.
17:27A little change around of the design along the way.
17:29We have changed the long and skiddy.
17:32We changed a lot of the cladding to aluminium, which didn't cost as much.
17:36We took a room out and propped it on top of the garage.
17:39We did, yes.
17:40So he's going to have an office up there
17:42and I'm going to have my craft room up in the loft part.
17:46And a lowering of the wall.
17:48That was the essential thing so that we could actually afford it.
17:51Yeah, so we made it work.
17:53And it's day two of excavation right now.
17:58The couple have followed architectural designer Alison's idea
18:01to straighten the house and push it all further back on site.
18:05It's also higher out of the ground so the retaining wall can be lower.
18:10These are big changes that should mean big cost savings.
18:15But...
18:16We don't know how much it's going to cost
18:18and we don't know how much money we have.
18:20So...
18:21We only got our bank to approve a loan until this July.
18:27And then they told us that actually they're going to review it even sooner.
18:31So like this month.
18:32So we don't even...
18:33Like we actually don't even know how much money we can borrow.
18:37Because the site is narrow with limited access
18:40the plan's always been to build the living wing first
18:43then borrow against it for the garage wing.
18:46So even though the cost estimate for the whole project is astronomical
18:49Cindy and Jamin can still believe in time both wings will be completed.
18:55However, they still have to come up with ideas to save money.
18:59We own the land and this is a place that we can physically live
19:04like this actual spot, like a campervan if necessary
19:07until the whole house is built.
19:09Jamin, I don't know if I can live in a caravan.
19:12Not forever, just for a little while.
19:14Just while they're building.
19:16These are certainly challenging times
19:18but I wonder how much of that reality is sinking in.
19:22Into the new year and Cindy and Jamin have managed to secure finance
19:26to at least cover the cost of the present work.
19:31Go guys!
19:32Go guys!
19:34They've even found a builder.
19:36Close to home too, Alison's husband Peter.
19:40The concrete blocks are going to be as tall as this over there.
19:44I'll bet $150,000.
19:45$150,000.
19:46$150,000.
19:47$150,000.
19:48$150,000.
19:49$150,000.
19:51How tall is this over there?
19:52I'll bet $150,000 down from there.
19:54Wow.
19:55So it's going to actually start to look like a big building.
19:58Yeah.
19:59Pretty soon, OK.
20:00Come up to the height of what you're leaning on.
20:02It's also a relationship that goes beyond the build.
20:06Cindy and Jamin have moved into one of Peter and Alison's rental properties
20:10so Peter is now their landlord.
20:14I hope the build goes well.
20:18They kick us off the job, we'll evict them.
20:20No, no.
20:22Today, the reinforcing steel for the concrete footings is going in.
20:26But while it's great to see more progress,
20:28the skyrocketing cost of construction is chewing up more of the couple's budget.
20:33And work on this site won't get any easier.
20:42For Cindy and Jamin, access to finance is a major stumbling block.
20:46Hi.
20:47Hi.
20:48One of those, please.
20:49Sure, what?
20:51They've been forced to face facts.
20:54The garage wing of their house won't be built any time soon.
20:58A radical scything of this project has occurred.
21:01Cindy and Jamin have literally cut the house in two.
21:05Of course, it was always their plan to build the house in two stages,
21:09one after the other.
21:11But for the foreseeable future, until their financial situation improves,
21:15they'll have to settle for a half measure.
21:18The guest bedrooms, the media room, the crafting room,
21:22who knows when that will be built?
21:25They're essentially left with an enormous one-bedroom house.
21:30Now, sometimes getting only half of what you want isn't all that satisfying.
21:37Unless, of course, the half remaining is really good.
21:41We'll see.
21:48It's July 2023.
21:51Well over two years since I first visited Cindy and Jamin on their Dunedin section.
21:56It's been a long, slow haul so far on the long, narrow site.
22:02For Cindy, though, the laborious progress is only part of the problem.
22:10How have you been coping?
22:13I've been coping.
22:15How have you been coping?
22:17Not that well.
22:19Yeah, it looks like a public toilet or a bunker,
22:21and neither of those is what I want to live in
22:23or want people to think I'm living in.
22:25But no, come on, that's just the base.
22:26That's just the, everything good happens above that.
22:29There's a lot of base there.
22:31Hundreds of thousands of dollars already in that.
22:34You kind of have to do that.
22:35Particularly on a site like this.
22:37It's always going to be expensive until you get to the status.
22:39I know, everybody told me that.
22:41It doesn't mean that it's not frustrating and like, yeah.
22:46While Cindy's having trouble coming to terms with the reality
22:49of building in this difficult location,
22:51Jamin is his usual calm and collected self.
22:55And with good reason.
22:56He's not here.
22:57He's on a business trip overseas.
23:02You're obviously relaxed enough to leave the project.
23:06Well, not really.
23:08Well, not really.
23:10It makes me a little nervous to see so many work people there at once.
23:13Just knowing how much they cost.
23:16And am I right?
23:17I understand.
23:18Everyone says that it starts happening really quickly now.
23:21Now that we're out of the ground.
23:23We're officially out of the ground.
23:24Oh, absolutely.
23:25Supersonic speed now, of course.
23:27Well, maybe.
23:28We'll see.
23:29It's a big house, Jamin.
23:30And we're only looking at, well, half of it almost.
23:34There's a way to go.
23:38I don't know if Cindy and Jamin's attitude to the build
23:41has changed that much.
23:43Cindy's still impatient.
23:44Jamin still pretty much goes with the flow.
23:47And I'm not sure either is the best approach
23:49when building such a complex and expensive house.
24:00What I do know is Cindy and Jamin's motivation
24:02is to build a home to enjoy as a family.
24:05Even though sons Percy and Paxton now live elsewhere,
24:08their dinners together are quite the occasion.
24:12This is why we're going to need a big kitchen.
24:14Because we're big people with big ambitions.
24:19Our island is going to be one
24:21that we can put hot stuff straight on and not worry about.
24:27Cindy has carefully planned the interior design and fit out.
24:30And while she's had to change some elements
24:32and materials to save money,
24:34she's determined to be as creative as possible
24:37with what she can afford.
24:39What we want to try to do
24:41is not necessarily have to pay
24:44for a bunch of rolled steel items in the house,
24:47because that's really expensive,
24:49but makes the door,
24:51all the doors in the house look like rolled steel.
24:54The bespoke painter has done up a sample board.
24:59So what he's going to do now is go back
25:02and maybe do like a bluish wash over it.
25:05So it's not as warm.
25:08It's rust.
25:10Yeah, they kind of all look the same to me.
25:21One feature of the house
25:23that was always going to survive any budget cuts
25:26is the dome ceiling for Cindy's office.
25:28She's keeping some of the work in the family too.
25:31Keen artist Percy is designing the dome's painted fresco.
25:37I think that what we want to go for
25:39is just sort of the illusion of stars on the ceiling
25:43and then have a few little individual details
25:47that my mom wants to focus on.
25:48Like, for example, our different star sign constellations.
25:51But I think the main thing is the way that it's going to look.
25:54It looks like you're looking through the ceiling
25:57and it's sort of kind of creating this very unique space
26:00within sort of the library, I guess, nook.
26:05Percy's working on the dome
26:07as well as casting his artistic eye
26:09over the interior design of the whole house,
26:11all the while going through a gender transition.
26:15Getting surgery and things like that,
26:18I tried to sort of plan it around the house-building process
26:22because I didn't want it to get, you know, in the way,
26:25even though it was a really important thing for me.
26:27But it was equally important that, you know,
26:30we didn't all feel like we were being really overwhelmed
26:33by a million things at the same time.
26:36We've definitely sort of figured out
26:38where, like, our boundaries are
26:40and what does and doesn't stress us out
26:42and how we interact with each other in the same space.
26:44And that's been really significant
26:46for, like, my own personal development as well.
26:49♪
26:59Rolling on to November 2023,
27:01and the build has steadily progressed all year.
27:04And now the framing is up.
27:06Cindy and Jamin can walk through their house
27:08for the first time
27:10and appreciate just how big it is.
27:13Look, you really can get a good idea
27:15of what it's like, finally.
27:17Wow, it's going to be so amazing.
27:19And the deck out this way.
27:21I know, I'm very excited about the deck.
27:26As I understand it,
27:28the psychology behind making the studs so high
27:30is to give Cindy and Jamin the space
27:32to relax and unwind
27:34away from their busy professional lives.
27:37However, the height has caused a bit of stress
27:40for Builder Peter.
27:43I actually had quite a fright when I saw how high it actually was.
27:46When you say six metres, yeah, you think six metres,
27:48but when you actually see it, it's high.
27:56The house is now a long way from a bunker,
27:58or, heaven forbid, a public toilet.
28:01And Cindy and Jamin finally appear to be happy.
28:04And no one's happier about that
28:06than architectural designer Alison,
28:08who's here for a lighting meeting with the electrician.
28:12Remember, I'm kind of a lamp person,
28:14so, yeah, not so much kind of bright overhead stuff.
28:19While lamps are pretty standard,
28:21lighting a domed ceiling is something else again.
28:24It's a feature of the house Cindy and Jamin have fought
28:27very hard to keep,
28:29and they want it just right.
28:32It's going to be plaster cast,
28:34but not sticking out of the roof.
28:36Fit it into the ceiling, yeah.
28:39But while the finer points are now being discussed,
28:43I trust someone's keeping a close eye on the money.
28:46Cindy and Jamin have taken their house
28:49and literally cut it in half to come in on budget.
28:52It will be devastating if they don't.
29:04It's autumn 2024 at Cindy and Jamin's house.
29:07The framing is all up, the roof is on,
29:10and the windows won't be too far away.
29:12And youngest son Paxton is taking a look around.
29:19Wow, this is pretty big.
29:22It's absolutely massive, and it's all one storey as well.
29:25But I'm a bit worried.
29:27It doesn't look like there's anywhere for me to sleep in here.
29:30There's no bedroom for me.
29:32This entire area is pretty much all my mum and dad's domain.
29:38With Paxton flatting in central Dunedin
29:41and Percy in Scotland,
29:43their bedrooms will have to wait until the garage wing is built,
29:46whenever that is.
29:49It's a lot bigger than I'm used to,
29:52a lot more opulent than I'm used to.
29:55I do think it's a little overkill.
29:58I really hope they can enjoy their lives and just relax after this.
30:02Right now, though, Cindy has only one thing on her mind.
30:07The dome ceiling for her library office.
30:13So this is the first coat?
30:15Yep, which is called the face.
30:20To make the dome, the couple have engaged at an Eden company
30:23specialising in fibrous plaster mouldings.
30:26Decorative features normally found in a dome,
30:30and grand traditional buildings.
30:33Because the plaster sets in about 20 minutes,
30:36we've got to keep it moving.
30:40Cindy and Jamin have worked hard to save their dome
30:43from budget cuts,
30:45and now it's being made one quarter at a time.
30:49A lot of skill involved,
30:51and Dave's probably the best around to do that sort of work,
30:54aren't you, Dave?
30:56You're the best around.
30:58I'm going to have the poshest office in the South Island, I think.
31:03The dome is the star of the show,
31:05but it needs a rim surrounding it,
31:07and making one is another skilled operation.
31:11Definitely feel stressed.
31:13I don't want to say it too much,
31:15because I don't want to put it on them.
31:17Don't be stressed.
31:19But, like, you wouldn't want to mess this up,
31:21because then you'd have to start over.
31:23Historically, dome ceilings are associated
31:25with classical architecture,
31:27and certainly not with North American mountain modern.
31:31Except, perhaps,
31:33in what Cindy has in her mind for her house.
31:38Mountain modern with, just once in a while,
31:41some really, some jewel-like things.
31:44That's kind of the idea.
31:46I want to have spaces that are, like, ooh,
31:48I want to have a little bit of everything.
31:50That's kind of the idea.
31:52I want to have spaces that are, like, ooh,
31:54but just spaces, not the whole thing.
31:56Yeah, so I think this is going to work perfectly,
31:58especially with the pretty extravagant painting
32:01that's going to be on the dome.
32:09I've timed my visit to witness the dome being installed.
32:13Hopefully, it's something special,
32:15because there hasn't been much to celebrate so far on this build.
32:20Here we are, though, with a house
32:22that's starting to look like it belongs on the hill,
32:25albeit only half the house they wanted.
32:28Now, that's a bit better.
32:31Today, the builders are continuing
32:33to put the linings on the walls.
32:35Stylistically, a little bit country farmhouse, perhaps,
32:39and yet the huge windows are very industrial.
32:43Whatever's going on with the design, though,
32:45it's easy to be distracted
32:47by the amazing view of Otago Harbour,
32:49and by the sheer height of this room.
32:53You really have to be in this house
32:56to feel the volume.
32:58It's so tall.
33:00And this is only half of the house.
33:02I know. I can't even think about... I know.
33:04Do you like it? Do you like the house?
33:06Do I like your house? Yeah.
33:08Gosh, I'd better say the right thing here.
33:10Yeah, I...
33:12No, seriously. Seriously?
33:14Seriously, here we go.
33:16So, I've been worried about your house,
33:18and I've been here, and it feels...
33:20lovely.
33:22Yes.
33:24You don't need my approval.
33:26But...
33:28But you've been waiting for it for the past three years.
33:30And...
33:32But, you know, we're not finished yet.
33:34No.
33:36Let's hold that hug for later.
33:38Yeah, exactly.
33:40On the library ceiling, the dome is going in,
33:42quarter by quarter.
33:44Well, that's the theory, anyway.
33:46It's not long yet.
33:50Possibly not the best time
33:52for the clients to walk into the room.
33:54Plus that guy off the TV.
33:56So, what's happening?
33:58Yes, sir.
34:00Okay. Piece of cake.
34:02Right. Okay. Yeah.
34:04That's what they're all trained to say.
34:06Piece of cake. No worries.
34:08Everybody look, and they smile.
34:10Uh-huh. No worries.
34:13Needless to say,
34:15the quarters do have to line up precisely.
34:17There's only one way
34:19this dome goes together.
34:21Well, the truth is,
34:23there's a reason why we don't build spheres
34:25very often. Yeah.
34:27They're very difficult to construct.
34:29There's no mistakes in art.
34:31They're just features.
34:33Well, that's a good thing to hold on to.
34:35Who needs perfection?
34:37Or you do?
34:39Well, I'd like us to aim for it,
34:42and then I know we're going to get really good,
34:44at least.
34:50Okay. No pressure, man.
34:57And before too long,
34:59after some patient and expert
35:01persuasion, the four quarters
35:03make up the whole.
35:07Woo! Yes!
35:09Yeah.
35:11That was stressful.
35:13Yay!
35:15Yay!
35:19We're starting to see the first glimpses
35:21of all of those things that
35:23Jamin and Cindy have been dreaming about,
35:25turning this construction shell
35:27into a house.
35:29And to be honest, it's a bit of a relief,
35:31isn't it? I mean, it's been some time.
35:33And remember, they've cut
35:35their coat to suit their cloth.
35:37They're only getting half of that original dream.
35:39The question is,
35:41with their lofty expectations,
35:43will half
35:45be good enough?
35:55Try and imagine
35:57how Cindy and Jamin are feeling right now
35:59after four long years
36:01of wrangling this build.
36:03Countless hours and money spent.
36:05A few highs, but probably
36:07a few too many lows.
36:09And remember, we're only
36:11going to see an incomplete version
36:13of the house that they wanted.
36:15So how are they feeling right now?
36:17Let's find out.
36:19Well,
36:35for half a house,
36:37that's a deck and a half, isn't it?
36:39It would grace any
36:41good public beauty spot,
36:43which feels appropriate.
36:45Actually, the scale here is amazing.
36:47It could be walking up to a little hut,
36:49but as you approach, it gets bigger
36:51and bigger.
36:55Oh, and an enormous front door,
36:57of course.
37:01Hey! Hello.
37:03Cindy, how are you?
37:05I'm really good to see you.
37:07Hey, Tom. Good to see you again.
37:09Thank you. I have to say,
37:11this is astounding.
37:17The quality of light,
37:19that view,
37:21and I love how the fact
37:23that it's so tall, you sort of forget
37:25about ideas of roofs and ceilings.
37:27It floats away, and you're just connected
37:29with that view.
37:33What I was intrigued to find out was
37:35how do you fit normal-sized furniture
37:37in such a big space?
37:39And here, it's all antique,
37:41so there's quite a contrast with the style
37:43of the house.
37:45Yeah, I guess that's the mountain
37:47part of the mountain, modern design.
37:53And this is...
37:55Well, it's not an island, is it?
37:57It's a continent.
37:59Enormous!
38:01We finally got the chef's kitchen for Jamin.
38:03That was our second big necessity
38:05after the windows.
38:07And this is an intercontinental
38:09landing strip of a light. It's amazing.
38:11It's got these lovely little delicate
38:13corners and slots where you get a
38:15flash of light through.
38:17No, it's fantastic.
38:25The size comes at a cost, though.
38:27Literally half the house is kitchen
38:29and living, and there's only one bedroom.
38:31The other two bedrooms planned
38:33were in the wing that hasn't been built.
38:35And the only spare space here
38:37has a higher purpose.
38:39So here's
38:41the library in my office.
38:43What do you think?
38:47I told you, magic!
38:49Yeah, there's a bit of magic. So this is Percy's design.
38:51And what are we looking at? Is that Gemini twins?
38:53Yeah, you're looking at
38:55feminized astrological symbols
38:57superimposed on a southern night sky.
38:59It's magic, eh?
39:01Yeah, it elevates this room, doesn't it?
39:03This is a room for thinkers
39:05and stargazers and dreamers.
39:07Stargazers and dreamers.
39:09And this is your desk.
39:11So this is Cindy's experience.
39:13Yep.
39:15Which is...
39:17That's one of contemplation, isn't it?
39:19The earth and the sea, the heavens.
39:21A bit of academia.
39:23The only thing is, I don't know how much the computer
39:25would be turned on.
39:27That's the only problem.
39:29Each room in the house
39:31offers a distinctly different
39:33experience.
39:35There's its antique furniture,
39:37the kitchen with its industrial look and feel.
39:39And the library office,
39:41a study in Victorian style, perhaps.
39:43And the bathroom?
39:45Well, this is in a category
39:47all on its own.
39:49Well, I wasn't expecting this.
39:51Ha!
39:53The wall covering it, it's a trompe l'oeil, isn't it?
39:55It feels like riveted steel.
39:57Sexy prison cell
39:59is what we call it.
40:01Yeah, well,
40:03I'll leave that to you to describe.
40:05Gosh, yeah,
40:07it's a strong look.
40:09Thanks.
40:11The distinctly
40:13gridded windows provide another
40:15strong aesthetic, from the
40:17social spaces right down to the
40:19master bedroom.
40:21With its light and airy en suite,
40:23a big contrast to the bathroom
40:25we just left.
40:27Wow, the eyes open again
40:29after the dark bathroom.
40:31Wow.
40:33I feel like we get to appreciate the bush a lot from this room.
40:35It's almost coming in.
40:37It is, it's growing towards you, isn't it?
40:39It's four years of growth there.
40:41Ooh, yes.
40:43There'll be a hot tub
40:45out here eventually.
40:47But until then, there's more gazing.
40:49Yeah, we can just stand and look.
40:51It's been a real
40:53journey through this house.
40:55Very different feelings
40:57in all the rooms and very stimulating.
40:59Thanks, well, we love it.
41:07Do you know what I'm curious about?
41:09Is that you've got this
41:11great house, but you
41:13got here through a process that was
41:15quite the opposite. It was, you know,
41:17financially terrifying at times,
41:19lengthy, and so is this
41:21just one big psychological experiment
41:23with you two as the test subjects?
41:25Is that what's going on?
41:27It could seem that way
41:29in retrospect, I agree,
41:31but it wasn't meant to be that way.
41:33I think it was harder for me,
41:35and Jamin was amazing balance
41:37to my stress and impatience
41:39and frustration
41:41about how long things took.
41:43The steadying influence
41:45in the storm.
41:51There was a sense that you were also diving
41:53into quite a lot of unknown territory
41:55with budget, which was
41:57tiny, then massive, building on a hill.
41:59All of the things that you
42:01don't understand until you do it.
42:03Yeah, totally.
42:05There was that horrible 4.25, 4.3 million
42:07figure that meant you had to rethink
42:09quite drastically.
42:11And so
42:13we now have a really big
42:15one bedroom house.
42:17Your family people, where are you going to put them?
42:19Well, Paxton just
42:21slept on the couch the other night, so he didn't
42:23really love it. Yeah, I think that they'll be happy
42:25when stage two happens and there's a place.
42:27Well, let's talk about that stage two.
42:29So it is going to happen.
42:31So how does that work? How much have you spent
42:33to date?
42:35We haven't gotten the final invoice, but I believe
42:37it'll be about $2.1 million
42:39on what we've done so far.
42:41And so, the next part?
42:43We have an estimate
42:45from Alison and Peter
42:47of about $800,000
42:49for the addition.
42:51It will depend on
42:53what we can negotiate from the bank
42:55and if we need to, we'll change
42:57the design.
43:01I would say
43:03enjoy this part.
43:05You've got to where you want it to be.
43:07Soak in what you have.
43:09And hopefully, those four years
43:11will be just a distant memory.
43:13Looking forward, right?
43:15Everyone who comes here is just
43:17first they're stunned and then they feel
43:19calm.
43:21Add me to that list.
43:23And how could you want anything more?
43:31This house, for me, represents
43:33an intriguing dichotomy.
43:35Cindy and Jamin were more than a little naive
43:37about what it would take to build this house.
43:39But at the same time,
43:41as it turns out, entirely resolved
43:43in the idea of the home
43:45and what it would be like.
43:47Yeah, they fought the battles, didn't they?
43:49I mean, at that stage where
43:51the budget costings came back at three times
43:53what they wanted to spend,
43:55most people would have rightly folded,
43:57compromised, pulled back, built something simple.
43:59But they didn't.
44:01Okay, so phase two.
44:03Let's call that a rain check, but play this one out
44:05and they will get the home
44:07they've dreamt of, the ideal home.
44:09And for me,
44:11that resolve is truly inspirational.
44:13A bit like the view.
44:43¶¶ ¶¶