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.
Gilbert's star guard Emily Arel scored 29 points through double coverage when Gilbert hosted HVRHS Jan. 21.
HVRHS seniors Tessa Dekker and Daniela Brennan were both sidelined by sickness. Seven players suited up for the Mountaineers, and one exited early due to a hard collision.
No. 1 Olivia Brooks played point guard while No. 3 Victoria Brooks played shooting guard for HVRHS.Riley Klein
HVRHS’s defensive strategy was to contain Arel with double-teams and force other Gilbert players to score. The plan was relatively effective through three quarters, but Arel kicked into high gear late and scored 12 of Gilbert’s 18 fourth-quarter-points.
Arel had help from junior Addy Lillie, who scored 14 points in the game, and Neela Gilbert-Alfar, who scored eight points.
HVRHS was led offensively by Olivia Brooks with 14 points. Kylie Leonard scored nine points before exiting with an injury in the third quarter. Victoria Brooks and Khyra McClennon each scored six points, Maddie Johnson scored five points, Carmela Egan scored four points and Hayden Bachman, who was critical in defending Arel, scored one point.
With winning records going into the back nine of the regular season, both teams have their eyes set on the postseason. The Berkshire League tournament will get going in late February and Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference tournaments will follow in early March.
Hayden Bachman, sophomore, plays guard for HVRHS.Riley Klein
Romane Recalde speaking about her new business at Gather.
“We had all this land for the first time,” said Recalde, who started with a vegetable garden. “I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, but I did some research and found information about planting flowers to bring in pollinators. When I saw flowers bloom in my garden I was like, ‘Oh my God! This is what a flower is supposed to look like,’ laughed Recalde. “I became obsessed, and I knew the next year I wanted a flower farm.” In the spring, she began planting. “I signed up for the farmer’s market in Millerton and I didn’t even know if I would have flowers to sell. But I did! I figured it out.”
Romane Recalde and Jason Klein at GatherNatalia Zukerman
Recalde’s trajectory from hobbyist to business owner has come with its fair share of challenges, not least of which is the perishable nature of flowers. “Winter is definitely harder,” said Recalde, explaining how she imports flowers during the colder months while also nurturing seeds in a neighbor’s greenhouse. Despite these hurdles, the most rewarding part for her has been seeing the impact her flowers have on people. “It’s amazing to hear people say, ‘You don’t know how much this meant to me,’” she said, reflecting on the joy of seeing her arrangements in clients’ homes and weddings.
Klein, a board member of the Wassaic Project, co-founder of software development company ListenFirst, and a self-professed connector of creative minds, underscored the value of these conversations. “People here are doing such interesting things,” he said. “It’s a little funky because it’s in the middle of the day, so it definitely appeals to folks with weird schedules — usually people who are business owners or self-employed.” He’s hosted about five of these Gather sessions which have grown in attendance; this month’s event was sold out. “It’s a nice way to put a spotlight on something that’s exciting that might be hidden away,” he said, noting how the Gather series has allowed him to bring together a range of people — from business owners like Will Schenk, owner of the Cornwall Market who’s starting a chocolate business, to local political figures like Justin Potter.
Questions from attendees included how to juggle time and schedules as a business owner and how to deal with the seemingly shifting world of marketing and self-promotion. “Word of mouth has been amazing,” Recalde said as she shared that it’s been the community’s enthusiasm that has helped her new business take off. “Honestly, everybody has been so supportive and helpful,” she added, citing both Instagram and local chatter as key drivers in her success.
During the event, Eliot Wadsworth from White Flower Farm spoke briefly about continuing his family’s legacy, a perfect complement to the conversation about sustainability and the challenges of building a business in a small town.
Lauren Kemner, Troutbeck’s culture and commerce manager, said, “We love inviting people to Troutbeck, letting folks know that we’re open to the public. This program is such a great way to build community.”
The collected works include the photographs of Arhtur Hillman, Bruce Panock and Mad Rose’s gallery director Michael Lavin Flower; drawings and mixed media works of Karen Dolmanisth and Emily Rutgers Fuller; and Kim Saul’s kitchen cabinet shadow-box scultpures.
Brenda Butler, right, and Ilene Spiewak admired Karen Dolmanisth's pieces at Mad Rose Gallery for the opening reception of "Assembled" on Saturday, Jan. 18, at the gallery on Main Street in downtown Millerton.Nathan Miller
The works share a common transience despite their many differences. Arthur Hillman’s large-scale photographic prints feature otherwise still flower beds streaked by camera movement. Kim Saul’s colorful kitchen cabinets evoke mystical alchemy, the art of change whose practitioners sought to transform lead into gold. Michael Flowers’s collaged panoramas present fragmented, overlapping landscapes featuring conflicting winds and double images.
All the works featured in the exhibition are for sale. Mad Rose Gallery is open for visitors Thursday through Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 6 p.m.
