Neil Sullivan couldn't bear the thought of someone tearing down 160 Kingsway, but the restoration needed was extensive, including a tricky relevelling of the entire foundation.
From the modern feel of the master bedroom to the old-world details such as wood floors, the home is a tasteful blend of old and new.
At Thanksgiving dinner that year, a realtor friend of the family had mentioned a house in Crescentwood that was going to be torn down. She said it was a shame the house had to be sold, let alone torn down. With his interest piqued, Sullivan went to see the house for himself and ended up buying it.
"It was a gorgeous house with a lot of unique character," says Sullivan. "I couldn't bear the thought of tearing it down."
Although he was originally going to fix the house up as a project, Sullivan says he fell in love with place and moved in. He hired a general contractor and got right to work completely refinishing the old house. That involved tearing everything down to the foundation and essentially rebuilding the entire place.
"I could see the past glory, but the house was really looking rather tired," says Sullivan. "It was in need of a rescue."
The restoration project turned out to be a huge undertaking. Built in 1929, the house had not weathered well over the years. The foundation was in terrible shape when Sullivan bought it in October 2003 and the house had shifted beyond belief.
"It was really unique because every room had shifted at different levels," he explains. "It was an unbelievably complicated engineering problem."
After levelling the first floor, the second floor also had to be levelled. All of the incredible old woodwork and trim was removed, refinished and put back into the house in its former glory. New electrical systems, plumbing and heating were installed. All of the doors and windows were replaced, but all in keeping with the original flavour of the house. The care and attention to detail that was put into the restoration is evident throughout.
"We literally redid everything," says Sullivan.
Today, the house at 160 Kingsway is a mix of old and new. The house still has its old-world charm with its Spanish style fa ßade, but inside it has become a modern, completely updated home with all of today's conveniences.
The kitchen was completely modernized and the wall between the kitchen and dining room was torn down to open up the space. The main bathroom was completely gutted and redone with new tile work on the floor and walls and a full, rain-head shower. And now instead of having one bathroom, the house has four.
The home's pi ®ce de r ©sistance is the new addition that has turned an old house into a fabulous new home and grew it from 1,660 square feet into 3,000 square feet of living space.
"The addition has the modern conveniences, but fits with the old flavour of the rest of the house," says Sullivan.
The two-storey addition includes a very spacious in-law suite with its own ensuite on the main floor. There's also a large mudroom with main floor laundry and an attached double garage on the main level.
But it's the second floor that is really incredible. At the top of the beautiful old staircase, two small stairs lead into the fabulous master suite. Soft slate-blue walls, gleaming hardwood floors and an abundance of large, Spanish-style windows dominate the large open area. There is an ensuite and two more rooms off the main area. The two smaller rooms feature large, almost floor-to-ceiling windows. The result is an incredible space that is flooded with natural light.
The master suite is also very flexible in terms of use. One doorway leads out to a private, second-floor deck. Another doorway leads to a staircase down to the street level with its own separate entrance. When Sullivan practised law, he used the space as a home office for two years when he ran his practice out of the house.
Although the house was refinished as a labour of love for Sullivan and his wife, life has led them on a different path. They have left Winnipeg for warmer weather and moved to Belize. That's why the house is now on the market for $398,500.
