Celebrity landscaper Jamie Durie finally moves into his six-storey waterfront home and hits back at critics who branded it just another Westfield-style mega mansion

It’s been a long time coming, and not without hurdles, but famed landscaper Jamie Durie has finally moved into his six-storey mega-villa.

Construction on the beautiful Avalon Beach location has been completed, two years after Durie managed to get his proposed construction for a $2.7 million home approved.

Speak with Women’s DayDurie, 53, said the house was a “lifelong dream” that took more than a decade to realize.

“It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to build an off-the-grid house,” he said.

‘Ten years ago I sketched the house. We submitted the plans five years ago and construction has taken place over the past two years.’

But the dream didn’t come without a few nightmares for Durie along the way.

Construction has been completed on the beautiful Avalon Beach location, two years after Durie managed to get his proposed $2.7 million home construction approved

The landscape guru received Northern Beaches Council approval for his development application (DA) for the waterfront site in April 2022, despite receiving more than 50 objections from angry locals.

His plans to demolish a 1960s cottage and replace it with a large six-story mansion for his family were first met with opposition from neighbors who objected to the removal of seventeen native trees.

Durie previously made it clear that 1,518 native and endemic species will be planted on and around the site.

“We have fixed the problem and I have sent a letter to all the neighbors and the council explaining what is happening, and hopefully they will see it with our new plans,” he said on Today Extra in 2021.

Neighbors then wondered whether the construction of the house would affect the ecosystem of a local colony of micro bats.

Durie admitted on Women’s Day that he “regretted” the stress the gargantuan frame had caused his fiancée Ameka Jane and their children, daughter Beau, three, and son Nash, one.

“It’s the toughest project I’ve ever done in my life,” Durie said.

“I’m sorry for the stress this has caused our family.”

“It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to build an off-the-grid house,” he told Woman’s Day. ‘Ten years ago I sketched the house. We submitted the plans five years ago and construction has taken place over the past two years.’

The landscape guru won Northern Beaches Council approval for his development application (DA) for the waterfront estate in April last year, despite receiving more than 50 objections from angry locals.

The landscape guru won Northern Beaches Council approval for his development application (DA) for the waterfront site in April 2022, despite receiving more than 50 objections from angry locals.

Durie added that despite neighbors’ reservations about the construction, opinions are changing now that the eco-friendly home is completed.

“Everyone assumed it would be this mega-mansion, but now that they can see all the gardens on the roofs and all the solar panels, the sentiment is changing and we’re getting a lot of nice letters,” he added.

The build is the subject of Durie’s new show on 7Plus, Growing Home With Jamie Durie, which premiered in October.

Speak with TV week in October, Durie said the show had also been a labor of love that had taken three years to come to fruition.

The build is the subject of Durie’s new show on 7Plus, Growing Home With Jamie Durie, which premiered in October.

“We’ve been filming this show for three years now and as we’re growing the house we’re also growing the family,” he said.

‘Not only will you meet the family during construction, you will also see the birth of our baby boy!’

It’s been a busy year for Durie. In October, he dropped $3.6 million on a Byron Bay hinterland retreat near the popular tourist resort of Nashua.

The creekside farm, called ‘Akubra’, has a vast 30 hectare land that can accommodate up to 40 cattle, more than 300 sheep, chickens, llamas and goats.

The television presenter will also enjoy a five-hole golf course, a fire pit and a lagoon-style swimming pool, reports Realestate.com.au.

The property has three bedrooms attached to the family’s main home, as well as a separate cottage, a large farm barn and six paddocks.

Surrounded by tropical plants, fruit trees, a large vegetable garden and macadamia trees, Jamie will feel in his element as a famous gardener.