To Turn a Church Into a Home, It Takes Some Elbow Grease and a Little Bit of Faith
The panoramic view from Grant and Jennifer Peck’s home in the Australian state of Victoria is impressive: sunsets over nearby Melbourne, storm clouds rolling over the landscape and New Year’s Eve fireworks. Where they are viewing it from is just as imposing: the top of a bell tower in the renovated Methodist church they call home in Hawthorn, an inner suburb of Melbourne. They bought half of the subdivided church for $1.8 million in 2015.
It is part of a small complex that includes two other renovated church buildings—an 1800s church and a Sunday school—plus a newly constructed unit. Their three-bedroom, three-bathroom, 2,830-square-foot home, built in 1933, is the latest of the distinctive abodes the Pecks have lived in. As a family of five, they previously resided in a century-old farmhouse and before that in a modern-architectural home.
The Pecks were initially drawn to the structure’s five-story tower and three-story stained-glass windows that once welcomed worshippers to the church. Even more than its architecture, they like the feel of the four-level home, where they live with their daughter Amelia, 23. One thing the church offers is quiet.
The solid brick construction blocks out noise from traffic and neighbors, and offers a sense of comfort. “This building just wraps its arms around you," says Jennifer Peck, 58, a former educator and business owner. “Everybody who comes in here says the same thing; it just has an energy that’s really nice." Not everyone is drawn to such homes.
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