San Salvador at 161 Green Valley Road, Minden.
An iconic hilltop estate filled with rumours, hidden statues and a decade-long restoration is set to go under the hammer.
For the first seven years after buying one of the Lockyer Valley’s most recognisable homes, Clint Kanther couldn’t even open the front door.
Aerial view of the property.
Inside the home.
“When we bought the place, it was basically a rundown mansion,” Mr Kanther said.
“The front door didn’t open. Not at all.
“We eventually had to fix the foundations, cut the door out, weld it back together and reinstall it. It took seven years before we could open the door properly.”
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The fireplace.
The outdoor entertaining area.
The property, known as San Salvador, is on a 8.71ha block in the Lockyer Valley, west of Brisbane, and has long been one of the region’s most talked-about homes.
Along the way, the family discovered the home carried a long list of local stories and rumours.
“We even heard rumours Stefan the hairdresser used to live there, which apparently isn’t true. Someone else told us there was an adult magazine that used the site for a photo shoot in the 90s,” Mr Kanther said
The kitchen.
Designed and built between 1980 and 1988 by Italian stonemason Frank Minisini, the Mediterranean-inspired residence has become something of a local legend.
Mr Kanther and his wife Sarah, a veterinary surgeon, purchased the estate more than 11 years ago after relocating from North Queensland.
“My wife fell in love with it straight away,” Mr Kanther said.
“It looked like this incredible old mansion, but it was trashed.
“It needed a huge amount of work.”
The lounge.
What followed became a project that slowly uncovered the character of the original home.
“As we started cutting the gardens back, we kept finding things,” he said.
“There were statues hidden everywhere, pillars buried in the garden, bits of European stonework that had been imported from Italy.”
“Frank had brought all sorts of pieces over from Europe.
“We’d clear a section of garden and suddenly discover another statue or feature.”
The bedroom.
Over the years the family restored the property while carefully preserving the original craftsmanship.
“The goal was always to keep the character of the place and not ruin any of the
features,” he said.
One feature the family refused to change sits in the dining room.
“The architraves were actually handpainted by the original owner’s wife, Julie –
they’re beautiful and we refused to paint over them,” Mr Kanther said.
The sprawling estate quickly became an adventure for the couple, who now have two young children aged five and three.
Aerial view of the property.
They have decided to move further into the Somerset region to Esk, no longer needing to be as close to Brisbane.
Place Ascot’s Jacob O’Brien and Jade Murphy are marketing the property.
“This is one of those homes that everyone seems to know about; it’s incredibly distinctive and sits in such a commanding position across the valley,” Mr O’Brien said.
Ms Murphy said properties with this kind of architectural character and story rarely became available.
“It’s not just the scale of the estate, it’s the personality of the home; you can feel
the history in it,” Miss Murphy said.
San Salvador will go to on-site auction March 27.
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