House

6 Hillside Grove, Frankston

History
In 1955 Reginald Rees and Norma J. Watt purchased Lot 144, Hillside Grove, from C.L.M. Coop of Armadale.1 In January, 1956, Watt, a manager, of Kars Street, Frankston, applied for a permit to build a 2750 square feet dwelling designed by architects, Chancellor & Patrick, of Frankston.2 Frankston builder, N.A. Echberg, built the two-storey, brick and timber dwelling in 1958.3 Whilst still owning this property, the Watt's principal place of residence in the late 1950s was Beatrice Street, Burwood.4 In the 1970s, Reginald and Norma Watt and possibly their daughter, Kerryn Jean Watt, a therapist, resided at this address.5

Description
Two-storeys and walled with cream brickwork and vertical boarding, this is recognizable as a Chancellor & Patrick design, with its extended shallow-gabled roof forms, but it differs in plan and its dominantly two-storey scale from their earlier houses. Central to the plan is a circular staircase which commences next to the dining area of the large living room. Other rooms (such as the kitchen, study, bathroom and bedrooms) border this large space, eliminating passages altogether. Beyond the full-height glazing was the pergola-covered terrace and a screened circular pool, on axis with the stair. A double `car-shelter' adjoined the entry and yet another large pergola- covered area.

On the upper level were more bedrooms and a large sunroom, served by a balcony, under the gable overhang, which looked seaward. The design's main element is the two-storey central gabled section, with its balcony: a vertical extension of earlier houses. On either side, the single-storey wings have shallow gables running at right-angles to those of the central section, with horizontal window strips, to the upper level, slipping uneasily forward of the lower ridge lines. The extensive pergola area creates a platform for the upper level and abuts the lower at no predefined point.

External Integrity
(Inspection required)

Context
Mixed generally mid-20th century detached housing, unrelated to this design. Prominently sited on a hilltop.

Significance
Architecturally, this house is a further variation on the Griffin-influenced phase of the noted peninsula architects, Chancellor & Patrick, in this case set in suburbia rather than by the sea in native vegetation, also prominently sited and made more so by the atypical two-storey form.

Historically, it is a good example of the architect-designed holiday homes which distinguished 1950s Frankston from other seaside suburbs: of potential regional importance.