5844 WINSTON CHURCHILL BLVD., ERIN, ONT.
Asking price: $6.999-million
Taxes: $32,882.00 (2014)
Lot size: 151 acres
Agent: Duncan Harvey (ReMax Aboutowne)
The back story
Joseph Magnacca had three children and a house in Oakville when he decided to buy a second home in the rolling Caledon hills about 10 years ago.
The busy retail executive didn’t want to spend time driving to cottage country. He also thought a country property would allow the family to enjoy year-round activities.
They saw lots of potential in a 151-acre property near Erin, Ont. The owner had listed the farm for sale with an unfinished house set on the highest point of land. The surrounding fields are used by a neighbouring farmer to grow hay, soybeans and corn. The remnants of the stone walls of an old mill still stand near the road.
“It was perfect from our perspective,” says Mr. Magnacca, because the house was 80 per cent complete but he could still make decisions about finishes and upgrades.
There was also plenty of space for a second building that would give the kids a chance to practise their favourite sports.
For the first year, the family members concentrated on finishing the house and gardens.
The second year, they got to work on the arena.
“We took it on as a family project to design a sports facility,” Mr. Magnacca says.
Across the main drive, a private coach house has an additional bedroom and bathroom.
The house today
Mr. Magnacca isn’t able to spend much time in Caledon now that he is based in Fort Worth, Tex., as chief executive officer of RadioShack Corp.
Mr. Magnacca was brought in to engineer a turnaround for the struggling retailer, after establishing a track record at several marquee names in Canada and the United States. Over a span of 20 years or so, his career has taken him through the executive suites of Loblaw Cos. Ltd., Shoppers Drug Mart Corp. and the New York drug store chain Duane Reade.
His older kids, meanwhile, are now away at university.
The completed house has 4,000-square feet of above-grade living space and nearly 3,000 feet below.
The main floor is centred around a large great room with a kitchen that can accommodate lots of family cooks. There’s also a formal dining room, a separate breakfast area, a library and a second-story loft.
The master suite, overlooking the front drive, has an ensuite bathroom, a soaker tub and a walk-in closet.
Three bedrooms and four bathrooms are on the main floor, with an additional two bedrooms and two bathrooms below. Downstairs, a large recreation room has plenty of space for big gatherings, with a bar, billiards table and a home theatre.
Outside, Mr. Magnacca brought in a home builder to lay down a large patio and build an outdoor kitchen with a pizza oven, grill and built-in refrigerators.
“We wanted to make sure it was the perfect house for entertaining,” he says.
The low, blue building partly hidden by the sloping land is a 21,000-square-foot sports arena. The skating rink is not quite regulation size for the National Hockey League, but it is the size used by smaller city teams, says real estate agent Duncan Harvey of ReMax Aboutowne.
The distance from the blue line to the net is regulation, explains Mr. Magnacca, because his son wanted to practice shooting pucks from that distance.
Two ride-on ice resurfacing machines are used to keep the surface fresh. The facility also includes two dressing rooms – each with individual stalls – for opposing hockey teams. The authentic locker room trappings continue into the bathroom.
Mr. Magnacca regularly invites firefighters and police officers from surrounding towns to hit the ice for games and practices. “That’s our little way of fitting in with the community.”
Every year at Christmas, when all of the extended family gathers, the rink holds a family skate and a father-son hockey game. The facility also contains a basketball court and a gymnastics training facility. Mr. Magnacca explains that his daughter was a competitive gymnast who aspired to making Canada’s Olympic team.
The training area includes an inground trampoline, balance beams and bars. All of the equipment is in place to let the coaches help the athletes twist and turn, he says.
The best feature
Above the ice rink, a large party room has a window fitted with bullet-proof glass so that onlookers can watch the action below. To add to the authenticity, a few vintage seats have been installed from the former Montreal Forum and Maple Leaf Gardens. There’s also a small kitchen and lots of sofas so family and friends can relax between games.