CORNWALL — After alternating on and off the market since 2014, tennis pro Ivan Lendl’s 445-acre estate in Cornwall and Goshen sold for $12 million Thursday, Jan. 25, to a group of Wyoming-based LLCs, setting a record for the highest residential sale to date in Litchfield County.
The deal shattered a previous record-high sale set in 2008 in Kent by half a million dollars.
The Lendl property, with its custom-built, four-level, 20-room Georgian Federal-style stone mansion, had been listed for the past two years with Elyse Harney Real Estate. At the time of the sale, the asking price was $14,995,000. Agents Elyse Harney Morris and Bill Melnick represented the seller.
Kiara Rusconi of William Raveis Real Estate in Glastonbury, who represented the purchaser in the transaction, said although her client requested anonymity, “What I can say is that it is evident that the property has been well loved by the Lendl family and its legacy will be preserved for years to come.”
Land records indicate that deeds to the property were purchased through six Limited Liability Companies (LLC) filed with the Wyoming Secretary of State on Jan. 18. They include: 400 Mile 1 LLC, 400 Mile 2 LLC, 400 Mile 3 LLC, 400 Mile 4 LLC, 400 Mile 5 LLC and 400 Mile Master LLC.
“I am still pinching myself,” said Morris, several days after the closing. “Very rarely do you find this much acreage in Litchfield County, although you could go over the border in New York and find it all day long. That’s what creates the privacy and the ability to say that you have that much acreage. That is a big deal.”
In addition to the land, at the heart of the estate looms an 18,000-square-foot, 10 bedroom, 12-bath, Georgian Federal-style Greek-sandstone mansion designed and custom-built in 1992 for Lendl and his wife, Samantha, by the American architect Allen Greenberg.
“The symmetry, the proportions, the elegance… and the views. It’s just the epitome of luxury living. This really is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity,” said Morris.
The imposing stone mansion, situated behind grand gates via a long, winding driveway, features a light-filled entryway with a 24-foot ceiling height and grand crystal chandelier. Throughout the four-story home’s first level, French doors lead to gardens and patios.
The wood-paneled library, spacious living room, formal dining room and family room all feature fireplaces and wide-plank oak floors. A trophy room/office and eat-in chef’s kitchen and butler’s kitchen are also located on the main level.
Upper levels feature a primary bedroom suite with two oversized walk-through closets, a sitting room and an oversized bathroom, accompanied by an office with a paladin window, a children’s library and three additional en suite bedrooms on the second floor; the third floor has five en suite bedrooms,
Additional amenities, fitting a professional athlete, include an indoor pool that adjoins two locker rooms, a sauna, a workout room and a full-sized gymnasium. The outdoor amenities include a heated gunite pool with cabana, pool house with a kitchenette and full bath, tennis court, sports court and a three-paddock barn with sand arena, six stalls, hayloft, tack and storage room.
Morris said the listing attracted a handful of offers in the past two years, “but with this one we found the right buyer who really appreciated the property itself and the vast privacy it affords.”
The estate, she said, encompasses 152 acres in Cornwall and 293 acres in Goshen.
Morris described the process between seller and buyer, and broker to broker, as seamless:
“I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful transition from one owner to the next. The Lendls couldn’t have been more gracious, and the buyer’s agents were incredibly nice to work with.”
Rusconi, too, had nothing but praise for the process, the sellers and their agent: “It was such a pleasure working together on such a monumental transaction for Litchfield County and for Connecticut as a whole.”
Morris noted that for the Lendl family, leaving behind not only their beloved home but the communities where they have resided full-time since 1992 was “bittersweet.
They loved the Litchfield County communities where they were able to live, work play and enjoy. It is a normalcy that is hard to find if you’re in the spotlight.”
From 1980 to 1992, the Czech-American Lendl spent 270 weeks atop the mountain as the best player in the world during a championship-laden 13-year span, according to the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF)
Lendl, 63, retired from professional tennis in 1994 and was inducted into the ITHF in 2001.
Morris, who is co-owner and broker of Elyse Harney Real Estate in Salisbury, noted that although “we’re super excited” to have brokered the largest sale in Litchfield County history, her family’s independently owned agency “remains committed to selling homes to the local community. Five hundred thousand to $2 million is really our bread and butter. I do not lose sight of that at all.”
Riley Klein contributed to this article.
Anne Day
The home’s grand staircase.
Infinity Hall, built in 1883.
“We have a real opportunity to bring the residents of Norfolk closer together and add to a community already steeped in a rich history of the arts,” Rosenfeld said. “Thursday’s turnout and the positive energy we experienced are the very reason Goodworks exists. We are thrilled to help support and build upon the vibrant community spirit here.”
Built in 1883, Norfolk Village Hall — the former opera house, barber shop and saloon in the center of Norfolk —was designed by Palliser & Co. In 2007, the building was restored as the 300-seat performing arts theater Infinity Hall.
Goodworks Entertainment Group took over Infinity Hall in April 2019. Rosenfeld said he plans to realign the organization with his original dream of doing good works — hence the name.
He also spoke of a large-scale arts and music festival for Norfolk and of conversations with Melvin Chen, director of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival–Yale Summer School of Music, about a possible winter classical concert series featuring Yale musicians.
After a question-and-answer session, attendees stayed to enjoy live music, food and drinks organized by Lisa Ludwig, general manager of Infinity Hall.
Nearly 200 people gathered at Infinity Hall to discuss possibilities for its future use.Jennifer Almquist
Norfolk resident Tony Kiser praised Rosenfeld’s vision.
“If there is anything to be done, he’s the guy to do it,” Kiser said. “He’s got the experience, some capital to invest, and he has a vision.”
Henry Tirrell, Norfolk first selectman, welcomed the prospect of renewed activity at the venue.
“I am excited to see an option for dinner and drinks in town, as well as increased activity at Infinity Hall,” Tirrell said.
Cheryl Heller, chair of the Norfolk Economic Development Commission, said the announcement represents an important moment for the town.
“Infinity is a key part of Norfolk’s identity, and for the last few years that it’s been quiet, the community has felt the loss,” Heller said. “This announcement is tremendously exciting, not only because of the new restaurant and programming, but because David’s plans include contributing to the culture and life of the town.”
“I am completely delighted with the new direction,” said Norfolk activist and Economic Development Commission member Libby Borden. “I certainly hope Norfolk supports Infinity Hall in every way.”
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Artist Janet Andre Block in her studio in Salisbury.
Block speaks warmly of her printmaking teacher, the well-known artist Kiki Smith.
“She was incredibly kind and generous,” Block said. “What I learned in art school is what I want to do.”
During the pandemic, she painted in a world of swirling colors that suggest another world just within this one.
Block’s work will be on display at “Catching Light, 75,” at David M. Hunt Library from May 23-June 19. The opening reception will be Saturday, May 23, from 5 to 7 p.m. and she will give an artist talk Thursday, June 4, at 5:30 p.m.
The exhibit features 75 small paintings representing her varied painting modes.
“I’m offering these as a gift to the library,” she said. “Each donor who gives $75 can choose a painting.”
The paintings are 2-inch squares.
Janet Block discusses painting.L. Tomaino
Block has worked with nonprofit groups in the Northwest Corner for many years. She has been a volunteer for Project SAGE, the Lakeville-based organization committed to ending relationship violence, for many years. She has also served on Trade Secrets Underwriting Committee — the annual garden event that serves as Project SAGE’s largest fundraiser — for 25 years and remembers the first meeting around her dining room table. She served on the board of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation from 1991 to 2000 and was chair of the Fund for the Northwest Corner.
She has stepped back from her work with nonprofits to devote more time to painting, though she still helps where she can.
“I enjoy the early starts of anything. That’s why I like art, where I can start with a blank palette.”
“There is something about picking colors,” she said, describing it as “really a kind of creation — just the pleasure of mixing up a color, finding the next purple,” along with the immediacy of “the feeling of the brush on canvas.”
Block commends Hunt Library’s Art Wall team: Garth Kobal and Sergei and Zoe Fedorjaczenko.
“I think so highly of them,” she said. “I can’t say no to Garth, who is such a sincere, talented and generous person.”
Block is guided by the thought, “You are what you focus on,” and says this, along with the natural world and music, helps her bring herself to “light and beauty” through painting.
For more information about Block and the exhibit, visit huntlibrary.org and janetandreblock.com
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