And now for a truly mind-boggling look into the past — all the way back to 1962. We recently visited this 8-bedroom custom home, built for a family of 11 in Cedar Park. Tucked away on a private drive off 40th Ave NE, this tri-level estate’s minimalist exterior belies the sprawling mid-century playground within: inside you’ll find a billiards room with two bars, a shop room the size of a convenience store, a sunken living room around a fire, pristine brochures for the home’s material finishes dating back to 1963, celestial-print wallpaper, a dizzying array of bathrooms in various pastels, a labyrinthine network of bedrooms and a palatial master suite with sweeping lake views, replete with an en-suite bathroom with a dedicated vanity room and a real, functioning dumbwaiter.
The deferred maintenance throughout this home are both a blessing and a curse, as the eventual buyer will be treated to a museum-quality, fully-intact mid-century relic, unmarred by the interference of modern updates. They’ll also be treated to a massive remodeling bill. Though, at $985,000, this 5,380 square foot home is priced to move. Even the pool and adjacent cabana appear touched only by the ravages of time — and evoke a bygone era of large family gatherings.
Walking through its many corridors, one can’t help but wonder what happened to the family that once inhabited the walls of this well-worn, well-loved home. Delving into tax records, we found the owner’s name and subsequently, the family matriarch’s obituary in The Seattle Times. In it, she’s remembered for, among other things, running a donut shop franchise in Lake City — and packing into the family’s white Catalina station wagon with her 9 kids.
