As Mayor of Manukau for the past two years he’s been busy enough, and he certainly didn’t need the traumatic health scare in May 2008 thrown into the mix. Then, following closely on the heels of his recovery from heart surgery, came the announcement to restructure Auckland into the controversial super-city.
This could be good news or bad news for Len. Possibly in the unenviable position of being Manukau’s last mayor and ushering out the council, he’s also a candidate for super-city leader. If successful, he could be the new mayor of the entire Auckland region. Whatever way you look at it, he’s got a lot on his plate.
Regardless, Len and his equally busy wife Shan (that’s short for Shirley-Anne) Inglis, welcomed Our Homes TODAY into their home several Sundays ago, a day that’s usually set aside for church and family.
The couple purchased their Manukau lifestyle block of just under a hectare 16 years ago.
It faces due north and captures the sun all day.
“I wanted 10 kids,” Len says, a figure Shan wasn’t taken with. But with Sam, now 20, Olivia, 13, and 10-year-old Victoria, the couple has definitely come in above the national average. That’s not bad for a full-time lawyer mum and, at the time, a hard-working lawyer dad with community involvement political aspirations.
They found their special piece of land on a semi-rural subdivision off Redoubt Road.
“The house stands proud but it’s not exposed,” says Len. “The garden steps down several levels like a natural amphitheatre and that’s ideal for protecting the trees.”
There were already some established native trees on the property. The largest are the impressive kaihikitea, some 90 years old, with paddocks covering the rest of the land.
The couple’s vision was to plant and regenerate the native bush, and that’s been achieved – with bush now covering half the property.
The clay soil needed a lot of attention before the new trees would establish. Luckily Len picked up good work habits while working as a house painter around Howick and Pakuranga as a student.
He believes “preparation is everything” and thousands of metres of mulch and soil were moved in, tonnes of rocks shifted and many of the trees planted.
But the hard work has been worth it. The trees are well-established now and even need the occasional cut back. The Browns feel very proud every time they look at the bush from the house or wander along the paths, and they delight in seeing the wood pigeons fly between the trees.
The couple wanted the home to follow the contours of the land, and architect friend Geoff Ward came up with a five-bedroom, split-level home plus a two-bedroom flat for Shan’s mother. The house is large, colourful and tidy, and the Catholic family unit solid and extended.
“Growing up, we both gained strength from our close-knit families and wanted to create something similar with ours,” says Shan. “We couldn’t do what we do without my mother, and Len’s father lives nearby too.”
Special family times are spent in the pool in summer with Len’s aquatic party trick the pike dive. Rare occasions when all the Browns can chill out in the family room together are precious too.
Learning the piano is on the list as well.
Len’s too busy to travel at present but he doesn’t feel deprived. With 4000 new citizens welcomed into Manukau every year, he’s in constant contact with the rich and diverse cultural mix that makes up the city.
