On The Market
Shadyside splendor: Historic Georgian mansion in exclusive enclave is a $16.5 million gem
Editor's Note: Houston is loaded with must-have houses for sale in all shapes, sizes, and price ranges. In this continuing series, CultureMap reporters snoop through some of our faves and give you the lowdown on what's hot on the market.
While much of Houston's moneyed set settles in River Oaks, the low-key wealthy look to Shadyside, a prestigious gated community near Rice University with a historic past. A classic Georgian-style manor house designed by Harrie T. Lindeberg and his protégé John Staub, built in 1921, is one of only 16 homes in the exclusive area.
Listed in the National Registry of Historic Places, the meticulously restored and updated home, nestled on 1.7 acres in a park-like setting of magnificent live oak trees and landscaped gardens, is on the market as one of the most expensive homes currently for sale in the city.
The elements: Among the home's highlights is a dining room with a complete vintage set of Zuber's panoramic wallpaper depicting all five scenes of the Views of North America (pictured above) rarely seen outside of museums and the White House, where first lady Jackie Kennedy had similar wallpaper block print panels installed in the '60s.
Other unique features include a formal living room with two 10-foot glass doors on each end that open to the terrace; a second-floor master bedroom with hand-plastered, waxed, and polished walls, plus a ceiling with hand-painted design and a luxurious marble master bath with a fireplace (one of seven in the house); and three custom-configured walk-in closets.
The main house has five bedrooms, five full baths, and three half baths, in addition to such other features as "his" and "hers" offices, a paneled library, a glass-enclosed exercise room, an expansive kitchen with a butler's panty and wet bar, and a free-floating curved staircase for which architect Lindeberg is famous.
The original carriage house has been updated as a guest suite, with an oversized living room, bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, and laundry. The backyard features an illuminated pool with fountains amid century-old oak trees, as well as a rear terrace with a custom ironwork gazebo, and an air-conditioned pool house with a kitchenette and half-bath.
Square footage: 12,808
Asking price: $16,500,000
Listing agent: Walter Bering at Martha Turner Sotheby's International Realty