Mansion in Weston

[statler]

Originally Posted by ablarc

17. Don't be afraid to design for the rich. The best things only the rich can afford (The rest of us visit to get our jollies.)

It should be noted that this only works in urban settings. In suburban enclaves you get this:

Originally Posted by The Globe

Living large
Even in the wealthy town of Weston, the mansion that Jim and Kim Pallotta are building is in a class by itself



By Sarah Schweitzer, Globe Staff | December 16, 2007

WESTON - When their Georgian-styled manse is complete, Jim and Kim Pallotta will be able to while away an evening in a 12-seat theater. Or they could shoot billiards in the games room or spin vinyl records in the music room. Or they could wander the wine cellar with its separate wings to accommodate magnums and jeroboams.

And that's just the basement.

The Pallottas' estimated $21 million, 20-room fieldstone and slate edifice, stretching from Ash to Wellesley streets in this mansion-studded town, will have, upon completion, some 21,000 square-feet of living space - making it the fifth most spacious in the state, according to Warren Group records. (Original plans had called for 28,000 square feet of living space, but the prohibitive price spurred a scale-down.)

How big is 21,000 square feet? Consider: The Pallottas' house could fit 11 average-size Massachusetts homes or nearly half a football field.

Jim Pallotta, 49, who declined to speak on the record about his new home, is a co-owner of the Boston Celtics who earned $200 million in 2005 as US equities manager for Tudor Investment Corp., according to Institutional Investor's Alpha magazine. He and his wife, Kim, who is overseeing the design of the house, have two sons, one in college and one in high school. The Pallottas have made their home since 1990 in a Wellesley colonial that was assessed at $3.4 million last year. They have other homes on Nantucket and in Charleston, S.C.

Their new home is set on a 27.5-acre spread purchased from Regis College for $9.3 million, along with a smaller adjacent property acquired later. It is a thing of frustration for curiosity seekers. Stands of evergreens obstruct the view from the road and private drives leading to the house are blocked by black chain-link fence covered with opaque green mesh. Signs warn against trespassing and note: "Cameras in use."

The house has taken two years to build, along with a year of planning, making for an employment bonanza in the construction trades. In addition to an undisclosed number of subcontractors, the building team has included a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning engineer, lighting designer, interior designer, architect, geotechnical engineer, civil engineer, landscape architect, structural engineer, and a general contractor, according to the plans on file at Town Hall.

In Weston, where real estate is among the priciest in the state and watchful eyes keep close tabs on property doings, there has been notably little opposition to the house. The Pallottas headed off criticism with a quick response to the concerns of town officials. The couple eliminated some outdoor lighting and planted trees that now shield the house from sight.

But when a palace rises in town, there is chatter.

"You'd need roller skates to go from one end to the other," quipped Judy Keller, who said the size of the house is legendary in Weston.

"It's out of character for Weston," said an 89-year-old Weston resident who declined to have her name printed because she is a widow and worried for her safety.

Others say that the house is not out of place on a parcel of its size.

"It's more like an estate," said Barrie Gollinger, a Weston resident and homemaker. "And that is different than a big, big house."

Mary Ann Davidson, a fellow Weston resident, noted that the Pallottas will pay the town large sums in property taxes.

"He's helping us out," Davidson said.

It isn't clear what the Pallottas' tax bill will be when the house is finished. Until construction is complete and the value can be fully assessed, the Pallottas are paying taxes only on the percentage of the house that is done. Already, though, the Pallottas sought a property tax abatement in fiscal year 2007, on the claim that their partially built house had been overvalued. They won. The town reduced their tax bill last year by $9,428.60, leaving a total of $125,772.53, according to town records.

"We filed a request that they review and to their credit, they corrected it," said Jeffrey Allen, the Pallottas lawyer.

Plans for the house call for the first floor to feature a four-car garage, a sunroom, a family room, a wood-paneled kitchen, a dining room with seating for 14, a breakfast room, and a living room. Jim Pallotta's office will be equipped with a bank of computers, much like his office in Boston at Rowes Wharf.

One half of the upper floor will be four bedrooms, two for the Pallottas' sons. The other half will be the Pallottas' suite, including a master bedroom with a coved ceiling, a master bathroom, a sitting room, an exercise room, and two walk-in closets, according to the plans.

Elsewhere on the property, an inground pool will stretch 50 feet by 20 feet, the plans state. A cabana will feature a kitchen, a bathroom, and a washer-dryer, and a carriage house with eight garage doors will house Jim Pallotta's muscle car collection.

A prospective neighbor of the Pallottas' on Ash Street, who declined to give his name, said the house is of little concern to him. It is obscured from the road, he said, and that's what matters.

But he added, "I hope he'll be a good neighbor."

Link

[unterbau]

So unbelievably tacky, but I guess you can't buy taste...

[Corey]

I wonder how much the heating bill will be. Or the A/C in the summer. If I had that kind of money, I would rather buy a penthouse in the city than this.

[statler]

^^
When I was reading this I was wondering if this is still for sale.

A much, much better real estate investment.

The real deal vs another plywood and plasterboard palace.

[Smuttynose]

I hate how rich people always feel the need to move to to already incredibly wealthy areas. Towns like Billerica, Woburn, Townsend, etc. need the property tax money far more than Weston does.

[Ron Newman]

I don't know about the other two towns, but Woburn has some pretty affluent-looking areas.

[kz1000ps]

Yawn..

You know what'd be a hell of a lot more impressive? A $21 million house that's only 2,500 square feet in size but is constructed with real stone for walls.. not this two-inch-thick veneer-on-wooden-studs crap.

[bdurden]

Originally Posted by Ron Newman

I don't know about the other two towns, but Woburn has some pretty affluent-looking areas.

...especially it's areas on the heels of Winchester and Lexington.

[statler]

Originally Posted by kz1000ps

Yawn..

You know what'd be a hell of a lot more impressive? A $21 million house that's only 2,500 square feet in size but is constructed with real stone for walls.. not this two-inch-thick veneer-on-wooden-studs crap.

Agreed!

I wonder if that is even possible under current building codes?

[JimboJones]

All I could think of was Versailles ...

someone's gonna torch that sucker, for sure ...

[kmp1284]

Here's my personal fave, it's even more impressive in real life and unlike Palotta's place this is actually just a summer/weekend home. The guest house itself is over 5,000 square feet. I'm not sure if it's fully complete, I know this summer when I was last in South Dartmouth they still had another couple months left. I was there in July for a benefit and the view of Buzzards Bay is really quite amazing. It's odd because aside from the areas immediately bordering the water and around Padanaram village, the town of Dartmouth is terribly mediocre in every possible regard.

http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/...80343/-1/rss17

[kmp1284]

Originally Posted by statler

^^
When I was reading this I was wondering if this is still for sale.

A much, much better real estate investment.

The real deal vs another plywood and plasterboard palace.

Not sure, but this is:

128 Comm
$11.95

http://www.ziprealty.com/buy_a_home/...&source=MLSPIN

[statler]

^^ I was hoping you meant eleven dollars and ninety-five cents.

Oh well.

Here is a link for people who don't have a ziprealty account.

Does the ziprealty page have better photos? The Sotheby photos are rather meh for $12M.

[kmp1284]

Actually, Sotheby's photos are slightly larger and clearer although they are the same shots.

[Beton Brut]

Repellently ostentatious. A pathetic knock-off of this fine New England home.

Favorite bit in the entire piece:

"It's out of character for Weston," said an 89-year-old Weston resident who declined to have her name printed because she is a widow and worried for her safety.

In other super-rich real estate news, looks like our old pal Frank McCourt just purchased this John Lautner home from Courtney Cox and David Arquette.

[ablarc]

Originally Posted by statler

It should be noted that this only works in urban settings.

Anything you say about a city is likely to be untrue in the suburbs, and vice versa. (Two different animals.)

[statler]

Originally Posted by Beton Brut

Repellently ostentatious.

Ostentatious isn't really the problem.
This house isn't 1/100th as ostentatious as The Breakers or Rosecliff. Both of which, along with the rest of the Newport mansions, are national treasures.

If anything, it's not ostentatious enough! The problem is with execution. As kz1000ps notes this would have been truly impressive as smaller house built with real masonry and craftsmanship. As it is, it's just a cheap imitation of a nice building. A McMansion supersized.