Movies like "The Untouchables," "13 Days," and "Dances With Wolves" helped make Kevin Costner king of the box office in his prime. In very kinglike fashion, he built a walled and gated Italian palazzo with every comfort. After changing hands a couple of times, the property is on the market again, this time for $5.5 million, according to a listing with Partners Trust.
Architecturally, the home will pamper its next owner with every Mediterranean comfort and style – except the actual sea, of course. It begins with the gated and walled entrance, which opens onto a palazzo that offers a three-car parking garage. Beyond that greeting area is another gated entrance to the backyard, where there is a tennis court and an additional motor court.
The 6,750-square-foot house has five bedrooms, six and one-half bathrooms, plus other necessities like an office, a library and a gym, which all serve the owner's need to both run the place and enjoy all that it has to offer. The first floor is a busy open plan. Past the front door, monogrammed with a wrought iron "C," a grand staircase branches out from the foyer, which itself leads to a great room and the sunlit dining room a couple of steps down. The great room, under a hand-painted fresco, opens out to a terrace, one of several throughout the property, including one from the master bedroom. From there, a resident or guest can survey the swimming pool, hot tub and pool house. The lower floor also offers a loggia and another terrace, which allow for snatches of quiet time away from the bustle of family life, or entertainment, to keep things lively.
The second level of the home features a working studio with a fireplace. In terms of design, the library and a couple of sitting rooms have almost a medieval Spanish appearance, as if they were inspired by Moorish architecture. They appear to depart sharply from the Italian palazzo look of the first level and the palazzo that welcomes residents home.
Whatever inspired the original architects and builders, or the two successive owners since Costner, the overall effect is impressive, and offers a stylish welcome for owners and guests.
