Canberra property: Architect Steven Cetrtek finds perfect inner south home to adapt

Architect Steven Cetrtek has brought to life the inner south dream home for many Canberrans and now he’s creating his own.

He sold his extensively renovated Narrabundah duplex in December and has been renting in Mawson while searching for the perfect site.

“There was not a lot out there,” Cetrtek says.

“I was looking at original homes that were untouched and ready for renovation that I saw as a potential project. If just seemed that properties were so rare and so few and far between. We were just about to give up and then this brilliant property came up and we’re absolutely thrilled.”

Cetrtek found a 1950s property on Captain Cook Crescent in Griffith, designed by renowned architect Kenneth Oliphant, and he has plans to maintain and enhance its original character.

“It’s a beautiful property with nice, original high ceilings,” Cetrtek says.

“The existing architect’s plan is really easy to adapt and extend, which is what I really loved about it. I couldn’t wait to get into planning and adapting the home to suit my wife and my two young girls.”

He says the inner south location is perfect for his daughters, who go to Red Hill Primary School.

“It’s a great public school and they’re just a walk up the road,” Cetrtek says.

“We’ve got Manuka Pool, Manuka and Kingston. When we were living in Narrabundah our weekends were spent taking our girls to the lake. It’s so valuable to be able to go out do that on the weekend.

“When we started looking at properties, we saw young families who were just like us, we all want the same thing – we want the lifestyle the inner south has to offer.”