His love for all things historic, particularly relating to Maitland, is overwhelming and that's why his latest quest is to find the city's oldest home.

Owner of historic Bridge House, built in 1829 in old High Street, Mr Marich wants to hear from the owners of other historic properties in a bid to find our oldest home.

He said the search would also provide the foundations for what he would like to see become a heritage home trail across the city.

Mr Marich purchased Bridge and Toll houses last year with the vision for the two iconic buildings to become tourist attractions.

Along with their sister home Walli House, the trio of properties is a little off the beaten track in old High Street, but plans Mr Marich has for them will certainly put that precinct on the map. He is restoring Bridge House to its former glory with the plan to throw its doors open to the public. In what he has described as a labour of love he is carrying out most of the renovation work himself. Bed and breakfast accommodation, where people can experience 19th Century living, and a wedding venue are just two of the ideas for Bridge House.

"Basically what I would like to see happen with finding the city's oldest home is to pull people, who own heritage homes, together and form a group. That way we can help one another source materials and tradespeople and have a chat about things and showcase the heritage," Mr Marich said.

"We need to help each other out and keep these historic properties in Maitland in good nick - have them up and going," he said. "It's so very sad that we are losing so many of our older homes in the name of development. Once they are gone they can never be replaced."

Mr Marich also wants to see cedar trees planted throughout the city. "I just bought three cedar trees and I had to spend an inordinate amount of time finding them," Mr Marich said. "They are no longer an easily available Australian native and year ago there were many cedar plantations here. Maybe Maitland council could buy a few hundred and say to residents they have a special deal for ratepayers to purchase them," he said.

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