Homeowners chasing historic St Kilda mansion

It’s been a boarding house, a funeral parlour, a yoga school and a Salvation Army hostel, and now one of Melbourne’s most historic properties could become a residential mansion once more.

Cloyne, at 12 Chapel St in St Kilda, was built by prominent barrister Sir John Madden in 1887 and has remained largely unchanged since, despite rarely being used as a home since Madden and his wife moved out in 1912.

Featuring 30 rooms, including a ballroom, the iconic and expansive property provides a rare glimpse into Melbourne’s 19th-century high society, and stands out amongst Chapel St’s ever evolving landscape of new residential developments, cafes and commercial properties.

Sitting on a huge 3149sqm block and with 62.5m of prime street frontage, Cloyne is for sale via expressions of interest, which close on March 23.

And its future could be inspired by its past, with cashed-up residential buyers among those circling the heritage-listed residence, with a view to restoring it and moving in.

Cloyne features 30 rooms spread over two storeys in St Kilda.

Selling agent Ed Wright, from CBRE, says there is a real possibility that the property could again become a home for the city’s well-to-do.

“We’ve had a heap of interest. We’re getting interest from residential homebuyers, hotel operators, aged care, schools, offices, a heap of different interest,” Wright says.

“There are some serious high net worth private buyers looking at this to turn it back into a home.”

“The fact that you can buy 3000 square metres of prime Chapel St turf, it doesn’t happen.”

Madden built Cloyne beside Alma Park in 1887, naming it after his Irish birthplace and living in it until 1912, when he moved to Cliveden Mansions in East Melbourne. While living at Cloyne, Madden was appointed Chief Justice in 1893 and Lieutenant-Governor in 1899.

Cloyne is considered ripe for restoration as a residential home.

The Salvation Army is Cloyne’s current owner, and Wright says the charity group is quietly hopeful the buyer will take an active interest in reinvigorating the property.

“They’d love just to see the building restored to its former glory, but whether that means restored to a house that was originally built in the 1880s or restored to a  commercial use or a hospitality use, they probably haven’t got too much of a preference there,” he says.

“It’ll be interesting to see who it goes to next week.”