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Randy Stieben says his condo appeared to him in a vision.

Given its otherworldly origins, it's likely no coincidence that a sense of boundless space defines his 5,000-square-foot, loft-style home.

One of only 10 units in a century-old Toronto warehouse that once housed Harris Lithographing Co., the apartment boasts 11-foot ceilings and sweeping views of Lake Ontario, just a few blocks south.

Mr. Stieben gutted and renovated most of the space himself over a three-year period starting in 1998, with a mind to maximizing its spatial flow.

"Walls, where they exist at all, are angled, or else undulate to eliminate hard edges," he says, standing in front of one in which he has inserted a freshwater aquarium. It's filled with colourful fish that underscore the home's feel of fluidity.

The open-concept dining room/kitchen maintains the visual balance and flow with built-ins that create a furniture look without clutter. Rounded shapes and corners abound in this area, which lies on a raised platform reached by stone steps from the unit's original hardwood floors.

"As for the pillars," continues Mr. Stieben, who constructed all the built-ins and Shaker-style cabinetry himself, "they are inverted triangles, thinner below than on top. My inspiration was Atlas holding the world on his shoulders."

Speaking of gods, the rather plain-looking red-brick building is home to Canadian celebrities, among them Olympian Donovan Bailey and songwriter Daniel Lanois, internationally known as the producer of the Irish rock band U2.

Visitors to the six-storey building might not realize that anyone lives there, however. There is no sign indicating it's a residence, no concierge, no communal sitting area.

Each unit has its own private, direct-access elevator that also opens onto a shared rooftop terrace where there is an outdoor hot tub, barbecue and lounging area overlooking the city.

Security is handled by a computer that allows residents to grant access to their guests from within their suites, or through their cellphones.

"The people who live here are private," Mr. Stieben notes. "But everyone's easygoing."

While perhaps not as celebrated as his neighbours, Mr. Stieben has his own claims to fame.

As founder and chief executive of Berkeley Computer Group (named for the Toronto street where he first set up shop 25 years ago), Mr. Stieben says he was the first in Toronto to specialize in toner refilling for laser printers, and the first to lease computers as part of a rent-to-own program.

"Renting computers was unheard of in those days," the 47-year-old entrepreneur says.

"I came up with the idea when I was doing a major renovation on my Berkeley Street printing studio and needed somewhere to store my equipment. One of my first customers was Ken Dryden, right after he moved back to Toronto after playing for Montreal. I used to be a goalie as a kid. I saw it as a good sign."

While a self-confessed computer geek, Mr. Stieben is a deep believer in the softer paranormal sciences involving signs, omens and other connectors to the so-called spiritual life. He is a follower of Tantra, travelling often to India and other parts of South Asia to immerse himself in the sexual rites associated with the esoteric practice.

His apartment is filled with associated relics, including a built-in king-sized bed in the master bedroom made from hand-carved antique wood panels depicting scenes from the Kama Sutra.

The four-piece ensuite bathroom, inspired by the spa at Bali's famed Kupa Kupa Barong luxury resort, has a corner Jacuzzi soaker tub as well as an open-concept, walk-through shower faced with creamy, large-slab porcelain tile. The double vanity features premium black Nero Assoluto granite and custom maple cabinetry. The eight-foot-high entry door is inset with a sculpted antique panel from India decorated with erotic imagery.

Of his cosmic journeys of the flesh, Mr. Stieben says, "Sex went from being something dirty that I experienced while growing up in Mississauga to being something beautiful when combined with the Kama Sutra and Tantric philosophy."

As well, he says he often experiences "visions" that tell him what he needs to do in life. He experienced one when a friend, Toronto photographer and real estate developer Bert Schmitz, invited him to join a group of investors wanting to transform the former factory into an exclusive condo building.

"I envisioned a sitting area with a giant jukebox, and a fireplace and a big home theatre."

Which pretty well describes the condo today.

A fireplace made of polished Piasentina stone lies on one side of the open-concept loft; an entertainment unit occupies the other.

Exposed brick and original maple floors are among period details that dovetail with an otherwise contemporary interior refitted with soundproofing, home automation technology, halogen lighting and an energy-efficient, dual-loop heating and cooling system.

In addition, a flexible live/work design allows for a variety of reconfiguration schemes.

Mr. Stieben's 16- by 48-foot home office, packed with computers, is separated from the main living area by two enormous, 450-kilogram custom steel doors.

Other units in the building are similarly flexible in design, as the original concept was to attract creative people who might want to work within their residences. Mr. Schmitz, for one, intended to turn his unit into a sculpture studio. Another occupant, a world-renowned collector of shrunken heads, uses part of his unit as a gallery.

Creating such a unique building took time. Mr. Stieben's own renovation, which was done in collaboration with builder Martin Neufeld and consulting architect Kelly Lem, took three years of navigating the bureaucracy and manual labour to complete.

In the end, the prevailing criterion for occupancy was money. Only those who could afford to wait out the building process ended up living there.

"Some of the original people got married and divorced in the meantime, and many of their businesses opened and closed," says Mr. Stieben. "By the time the building was ready to move into, many in the original group had walked away."

But not before reaping tidy profits on their initial investments. When prospective residents first bought 10 years ago, units were selling for $45 a square foot. Today, they are $650 a square foot.

Mr. Stieben is himself hoping to take advantage of a heightened Toronto real estate market. His condo is listed for sale with Sotheby's International Realty Canada for $2,985,000.

"I was never happier than when building this condo with my own hands," he says. "And now I want to build something else."

His next project will be a palatial log cabin in the woods. He says it came to him in a vision.