An extremely “rare opportunity” to buy a private island on Lake Minnetonka has just hit the market for $7,250,000.
Located in Shorewood, MN, the 2-acre legacy compound on Gale Island, surrounded by 1,841 feet of luxurious lakeshore, features several structures:
The waterfront barbecue gazebo, built in 1957, has a lower level for storage and a stone patio overlooking the lake.
A three-bedroom summer house with a stone fireplace, built in 1874, with a north addition completed in 1913 and later remodeled from 2006–07.
A three-bedroom main house, built in 1950, featuring a kitchen remodeled in 1990 and a family room and dining room added in 2001.
The guest cabin, built in 1954 and remodeled in 2009–10, offering two bedrooms, a kitchenette, and a sitting room.
A three-story waterfront tower featuring hidden beds and a kitchenette.
A log cabin, built in 1953, located across the channel and accessed by a bridge, features a stone fireplace and is currently being used for storage.
“Lake Minnetonka is the lake in Minnesota,” says listing agent Jeffrey Dewing of Coldwell Banker Realty. “It’s a very storied and sought-after destination, and it’s very rare for an island to come to market. This one has been in the same family for 53 years, which makes it even rarer.”
The three-bedroom summer house on Gale Island was built in 1874. (360-VIP)The summer house features a stone fireplace. (360-VIP)The log cabin, built in 1953, is located across the channel and accessed by a bridge. (360-VIP)
It is also located just a short boat ride from Excelsior and Wayzata, which have lots of restaurants, shopping, and a vibrant scene.
“The property will likely be used as a secondary residence based on logistics, but it potentially could be a year-round property,” says Dewing. “There are three main cabins that were used by different family members, so it is beautifully suited for multigenerational living.”
A sitting room in one of the residences. (360-VIP)The log cabin sits across the channel. (360-VIP)The property features a boat dock. (Spacecrafting)
Dewing says the buyer pool he is seeing has been unique.
“It could be acquired by another family and used like this was for a family retreat, or it could be used in a multitude of different ways,” he says. “There have been weddings on the island, and it has such a fun history.”
The island was originally purchased from the federal government in 1871 by Harlow A. Gale, a Minneapolis real estate developer, and remained in the Gale family for nearly a century. It was later owned by St. Olaf College and used as a retreat before returning to private ownership.
“There aren’t many island estates like this that become available,” notes Dewing. “It’s an incredibly unique opportunity.”
A truly dazzling property perched on the edge of Lake Michigan has landed on the market for $1.28 million—complete with its very own custom lighthouse that has a fascinating history dating back to the 1850s.
The home itself, which sits on 3.69 acres in Grafton, WI, was constructed in 1977 and features four bedrooms and three bathrooms, as well as an extraordinary array of unique design details crafted by the property’s original owner, Brana Kevich, a Russian Orthodox priest and woodworker.
Together with his wife, Neva Kevich, Brana also built the private lighthouse, which is attached to their home and was completed in 1981. But while the couple constructed the one-of-a-kind addition simply because of their passion for lighthouses, they learned that their property had actually been earmarked for such a structure more than a century earlier.
As it turns out, there had been plans to build a lighthouse on the property in a bid to improve the functionality of the nearby Port Ulao, which was increasingly being used by local merchants to import and export different goods.
Congress even appropriated $3,500 for it way back in 1850, but it was never built with public money.
A truly dazzling property perched on the edge of Lake Michigan has hit the market for $1.28 million—complete with its very own custom lighthouse that has a fascinating history dating back to the 1850s. (Realtor.com)The home itself, which sits on 3.69 acres in Grafton, WI, was constructed in 1977, and features four bedrooms and three bathrooms. (Realtor.com)The lighthouse was completed in 1981 and is now one of only a handful of privately-owned lighthouses in the U.S. (Realtor.com)The property offers spectacular views of the water—particularly from the top of the lighthouse, which is 50 feet tall. (Realtor.com)
Now known as the Kevich Lighthouse, the structure stands just 50 feet tall, the shortest height for a standard lighthouse. However, its light travels with a 163-foot focal plane. It has two lights surrounded by a rotating shield so the light shines for four seconds on and four seconds off.
And despite being privately owned, the lighthouse is an official U.S. Coast Guard certified private aid to navigation, under the light number 20765.
The Keviches sold the property for $410,000 in 1995, according to records, when it was purchased by David and Mary Bennett, who noted that they had always had an interest in owning such a unique structure.
“We’ve always been interested in lighthouses, and after a few years of watching the housing market, we kept following this particular property. So we finally made a deal and bought it,” they told Lighthouse Friends.
In addition to the lighthouse, the couple loved the property’s proximity to the water—and the incredible views on offer from their lakeside home.
“We love watching the water, seeing how it changes throughout the day, with the sunlight coming off the water,” Dave shared. “We also love watching the boats, like the Great Lakes freighters that pass by, along with pleasure boats and sailboats.”
Now, three decades later, the lighthouse home is being offered for sale for only the second time in its history, with the description noting that it represents a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own one of Wisconsin’s most iconic waterfront estates.”
“Perched atop a Lake Michigan bluff on 3.69 private acres, this remarkable home offers panoramic lake views [and] timeless architectural character,” the listing, which is held by Grace Stoll of Coldwell Banker Realty, goes on.
While the lighthouse is undoubtedly the most eye-catching element of the property, the house itself also has plenty to offer, including original woodwork designed by Brana during his time living there.
In addition to being a Russian Orthodox priest, Brana was a skilled woodworker and carved intricate doors and other accents. Beams highlight the vaulted ceilings in some of the living spaces.
The house itself features an extraordinary array of unique design details crafted by the property’s original owner Brana Kevich, a Russian Orthodox priest and woodworker. This includes a carving of the lighthouse on a door. (Realtor.com)The kitchen has a lot of wood and a great view. (Realtor.com)Another carved door features a scenic image of sail boats floating across the lake. (Realtor.com)The property features four bedrooms and three bathrooms, as well as many light-filled living spaces, including a main sitting area with a cozy fireplace, exposed beams, and windows that perfectly frame the lush green grounds. (Realtor.com)The front door also has a beautiful scene carved into it. (Realtor.com)
The front door features a beautifully carved woodland scene, with intertwined branches stretching across the width of the wood, creating a dramatic welcome to all those who visit the abode. Other carvings include a sailboat montage on an interior door and handmade light fixtures adorned with trees and flowers.
The property features four bedrooms and three bathrooms, as well as many light-filled living spaces, including a main sitting area with a cozy fireplace, exposed beams, and windows that perfectly frame the lush green grounds.
Another fireplace can be found in the dining area of the open-plan kitchen, which boasts beautiful brick floors and more exposed wood beams, as well as large picture windows that overlook the gardens.
The ground floor primary suite features yet another hand-carved door—this time with an image of women outside in the woods—and an adjoining bathroom.
There is also another door to the exterior that features a beautiful carving of the Kevich Lighthouse.
While the property is bordered by two other homes, it still offers a spectacular level of privacy, courtesy of the nearly 4 acres that it sits on, as well as the lush, leafy trees that surround it on three sides.
“Enjoy unmatched privacy, mature grounds, spectacular sunrises and moon rises, and a front row seat to passing freighters,” the listing states. “A truly irreplaceable legacy property blending history, beauty, and Lake Michigan living.”
And it seems that the allure of such a plum Lake Michigan parcel was too good to pass up for one buyer, with records showing that the property is already under contingent offer, less than a month after it was listed.
It’s currently unclear what price has been offered, but there are no doubt many lighthouse aficionados who would argue the value of such a unique property is priceless.
An architectural marvel that sits atop a giant boulder-like rock overlooking a lake in Idaho has hit the market for just under $10 million—more than five decades after the mastermind behind the property pulled off a feat of engineering brilliance to bring the vision to life.
The 2,190-square-foot “House on the Rock,” which sits on the edge of Lake Coeur d’Alene in Harrison, features enormous walls of glass that offer panoramic views of the water, making it feel like you are “floating” atop the lake, albeit without ever having to worry about motion sickness.
“It literally feels like you’re on a boat but you’re not moving. You have views all the way around you and it is so stunning, even on bad weather days. It’s just absolutely the best waterfront view I’ve ever seen,” listing agent April Gunther with eXp Realty in North Idaho reveals.
It is the kind of property that is both alluring and perplexing in equal measure; at first glance, it appears almost impossible that the home has survived on its rocky perch for so long without slipping into the water that surrounds it on three sides.
Yet Gunther notes that, while the property’s perch might seem precarious, it has undergone rigorous rounds of engineering that ensure it will occupy that plot for many years to come.
The house is anchored to the rock. (Inside Media Co.)The home sits on peninsula on Lake Coeur d’Alene. (Inside Media Co.)It feels like you’re on a boat that isn’t moving. (Inside Media Co.)
“[It’s] engineering. It’s anchored into the rock and it had to go through an engineering process,” she explains.
“Everywhere you look, you feel like you’re in the middle of the lake. The water is completely surrounding you. Normally you have quite a distance to go to get to the water, and with this, you’re living on the water so it’s a completely different feeling. It’s so hard to explain unless you actually experience it.”
The house, which arrived on the market on May 27 with an asking price of $9.49 million, has been configured with three bedrooms and three bathrooms.
However, its current owners—who connected the home to the main sewer line—have also added two cabins that each have two walls of glass and feature their own spectacular views over the water.
“They are so cute,” Gunther says. “They’re just little bedroom cabins.”
Though the home itself only dates back 50 odd years, the 3.5-acre parcel on which it sits—and even the rock itself—features a rich history that begins in the late 1800s, when the Fort Sherman military post was constructed on the shores of the lake.
“The soldiers there would board steamboats and go across the lake and there was just a kind of a platform that was built up on top of that rock and they would dance,” Gunther explains, adding the symphony from Spokane would also sometimes steamboat over to the site to play.
“The soldiers would bring their ladies and they’d dance the night away and then they’d get back on the steamboat and go back across the lake.”
There are views from every room. (Inside Media Co.)The land surrounding the home also has great views. (Inside Media Co.)The house is close to Gozzer Ranch Golf and Lake Club. (Inside Media Co.)Two new glass cabins are perfect sleeping areas. (Inside Media Co.)
After the military post was abandoned in the early 1900s, the site became home to a boys camp, until the land was purchased by the mastermind behind the house.
“He imagined putting a guesthouse up on top of that rock and that was what he did in the 1970s,” Gunther says. “He built that guesthouse and it has evolved a couple of times and it has changed since he originally built it.”
Plans for further evolution have already been drawn up by architectural firm Olson Kundig, which has crafted a vision for a reimagined main house and an ADU. Those plans will be conveyed with the sale.
The home site is more than 3 acres and has 320 feet of water frontage with a boat dock.
“The grounds behind the house are just flat and lush and storybook beautiful, so you really get the best of both worlds,” Gunther continues. “You get this beautiful land attached to [the rock house] and then you get to live in the lake.”
The property also includes deeded land within the ultra-prestigious Gozzer Ranch Golf and Lake Club, whose members or property owners include Wayne Gretzky, Mark Walhberg, Chris Pratt, Justin Bieber, and Kim Kardashian.
“In order to be a member at Gozzer, you have to own the property in Gozzer so there are very few waterfront homes with that access and availability to Gozzer,” Gunther explains.
“I really imagine this buyer wanting the Gozzer lifestyle but also wanting the waterfront lifestyle and being walking distance to the lake club.”
