‘Millionaire’s Walk’ neighbours at war over humble Portsea beach box on stretch of ritzy coastline that Eddie McGuire, Lindsay Fox and family of Gil McLachlan’s wife have called home
A neighborhood questioning access to a dilapidated boat shed that media identity Eddie McGuire once enjoyed will now be decided by a judge.
The feuding neighbours, who live on a site known as ‘Millionaire’s Walk’, have taken their feud to the County Court of Victoria in a costly civil trial that ended last week.
The blink-and-you-miss-it boat shed is located at the foot of the cliffs in Portsea, at the foot of Melbourne’s Port Phillip Bay.
It’s the suburb of some of Australia’s wealthiest people, with transport magnate Lindsay Fox’s palatial mansion just a stone’s throw from its feuding neighbours.
A boat shed has sparked a row in a neighborhood in one of Australia’s wealthiest suburbs
The boat shed is accessed via a staircase leading up the cliff
Eddie McGuire leased the property in 2009 for a reported $100,000 per year
The Millionaire Hot Seat host was connected to the Somerset Avenue property in 2009, when he reportedly took out a long-term lease on the then-$10 million property for about $100,000 a year.
The holiday home, set in manicured lawns and gardens with a walkway to the secluded beach, was believed to have been rented to the McGuire family for at least five years.
Documents and photos released to Daily Mail Australia show the boat shed nestled among bushes just off the iconic Shelley Beach.
The stairs leading to the boat shed are also under discussion, as are a boat ramp and an old borehole.
In a summons filed with the court, Ann Hyams claims that the barn and everything else attached to it has been used exclusively by her family, their tenants and invitees.
Mrs Hyams is at war with Helen Blythe – the widow of once wealthy lister Brian Blythe, who was the boss and then chairman of cleaning and catering company Spotless Group.
Mrs Blythe and her now late husband were the former owners of the historic Coonac home of now transport and property billionaire Paul Little on Clendon Road in Toorak, one of the most expansive properties in the exclusive suburb.
She is also the mother of Laura McLachlan – wife of AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan.
AFL boss Gillon McLachlan and wife Laura McLachlan, daughter of Helen Blythe
The house adjacent to the controversial boat shed was originally built by Walter Waldemar Pisterman, who died in 1989 and left the property to Mrs. Hyams.
The writ states that Ms Hyams is entitled to the boat shed through an ‘Adverse Possession Claim’, a property rights principle that allows someone to claim ownership of land without paying for it after 15 years of exclusive use of it.
Ms. Hyams claims that Mr. Pisterman built the shed around 1958 and used it to store beach gear, swimming accessories, boat accessories, personal watercraft and for recreational purposes while visiting Shelley Beach.
“The boat shed was the main access point to the beach from the plaintiffs’ freehold land, noting that there was no direct access to the beach other than through the boat shed via the cliff steps from the plaintiffs’ freehold land,” the writ said.
‘The boat shed is only accessible via an enclosed staircase connecting the claimants’ freehold land, or via a locked door at the beach end.
‘The Estate and Walter controlled the keys and access to the Boat shed prior to his death and only provided keys and access to their tenants and invited guests.’
Lindsay Fox lives near the warring neighbors
Portsea contains some of Australia’s most expensive homes
Ms Hyams alleged that Mr Pisterman and subsequently his estate had exercised ‘exclusive occupation and control of the boat shed since its construction circa 1958’.
She alleges that the original owner of the disputed land entered into an agreement with Mr Pisterman granting him permission to construct and operate the boat shed on his land in return for a nominal annual fee and permission to use the drilling water pump to share.
Tension over ownership of the boat shed rose in 2021 when Ms Hyams claimed her people acting on Ms Blythe’s behalf had installed locks on the door.
Ms Blythe had purchased the property in 1997 and applied for a new title in 2019, which she claims removed the previous agreement for the boat shed.
In a defense filed in court, Ms Blythe claimed her family had paid rates and land tax on the disputed land since the purchase and that the land had always been theirs.
The case will be decided at a date to be determined.