Flanked by marble busts and artwork and crowned with an ornate chandelier, the grand staircase inside the Park Lane Circle mansion guides visitors through the home’s three-story foyer.
With amenities ranging from billiard and media rooms to an indoor pool and full spa, the mansion offers all the creature comforts required by well-heeled homeowners.
Counting the guest apartment and coach house, the entire property boasts 11 full bathrooms and four half bathrooms meaning there should never be a lineup.
The former media mogul and his wife, Barbara Black, are downsizing, rarely entertain, and spent a lot of time in Europe, so no need for a Toronto mansion.
The former media baron and author inherited the home which boasts nine bedrooms, 11 bathrooms, a guest apartment and a coach house on a 6.6 acre property.
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Flanked by marble busts and artwork and crowned with an ornate chandelier, the grand staircase inside the Park Lane Circle mansion guides visitors through the home’s three-story foyer.
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“It is a big house for two people. We will be abroad a good deal, and moving to a more manageable home will be a convenience to us now as our careers have evolved,” wrote Black in a statement.
The home will be auctioned off by Concierge Auctions of New York in conjunction with real estate agent Barry Cohen from Re/Max Realtron Realty Inc., who said the property has an estimated value of $21.8 million.
With amenities ranging from billiard and media rooms to an indoor pool and full spa, the mansion offers all the creature comforts required by well-heeled homeowners.
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“Conrad and Barbara Black … are at a point in their lives where they no longer need such a large space,” said Adam Daifallah, the Black family’s spokesperson. “The children have all moved out, upkeep is time consuming and costly, they rarely entertain, and, given their frequent travels to Europe and elsewhere, they decided it was time for something more manageable in Toronto.”
The mansion, which was built in six stages, is essentially an urban castle with everything from an indoor pool and spa to a chapel that a press release points out was consecrated by two cardinals.
Known for being a voracious reader, Black’s home features plenty of packed bookshelves, including a two-storey, two-room library.
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Designed by famous architect Thierry W. Despont, who built homes for the likes of Bill Gates and Gianni Agnelli, the home is described as “nestled amongst trees” at the end of a “winding, romantic driveway.”
In its 65-year existence the Georgian-style mansion hosted Richard Nixon, Margaret Thatcher and even Elton John.
The estate houses its own chapel which was consecrated by not one, but two Catholic cardinals.
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Previously, Black has sold off 2.8 acre slice of Park Lane property, which was traditionally used as the service entrance to the estate, at an asking price of $7.2 million.
As well, Black’s British colonial-style Florida mansion in Palm Beach sold for the equivalent of $26 million in 2011 and he reportedly sold his London townhouse for more than $23.4 million.
No urban estate is complete without a state-of-the-art chef’s kitchen, which the property pairs with a wine cellar.
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The auction for the mansion will have a reserve price, though Concierge Auctions said they would not disclose it.
“The auction process was chosen for its convenience,” said Daifallah. “They [the Blacks] didn’t want the burden of having to prepare the house for endless viewings until it sold.”
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Counting the guest apartment and coach house, the entire property boasts 11 full bathrooms and four half bathrooms meaning there should never be a lineup.
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Black was stripped of his Order of Canada by Gov. Gen. David Johnston in 2014 after spending three years in U.S. federal prison on fraud and obstruction of justice charges before being released in May 2012.
He was once one of the world’s most powerful and influential figures with more than 500 publications under his banner by the late 1990s.
The house has dual sitting and dressing rooms as well as a formal dining room for fancy occasions.
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Dan Taekema Dan Taekema is a former Toronto Star staff reporter.
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