This lavish mansion with 13 bathrooms is the most expensive home for sale in Tri-Cities
Ten years ago, the monstrous shell of a house sat vacant and unfinished in west Kennewick, exposed to the weather.
Today, the lavishly decorated mansion is the most expensive home on the market in the Tri-Cities.
A 21,200-square-foot manor on six acres with a vineyard of carménère is listed for $3.75 million.
“This house was sitting on a lot with no roof, no windows, no doors,” said Nancy Thurston, owner of Thurston Properties in Kennewick who bought and finished the estate. “The Styrofoam was deteriorated and the framing inside was open to the elements.”
She bought the property through real estate agent Jerritt Wiser, whose father started the house.
Thayne Wiser was a farmer and land developer, who kept six acres for himself to build a large home where all his family could gather.
However, he died before it was finished, and it sat empty until Thurston saw the potential and bought it in 2011.
The Naoi Cailini Óga Winery estate at 100821 E. Brandon Drive is listed by Retter & Co. Sotheby’s, including in the New York Times real estate section.
The home features seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms and garage space for at least six vehicles.
The 4,350-square-foot indoor pool area exceeds the size of many homes and is equipped with a temperature-controlled indoor pool, hot tub and sauna.
Before Thurston found it, the home, made from Styrofoam and concrete, using a form of construction called insulated concrete form, had sat empty for three years.
She set to work over the next six years turning the space into a grand wine estate, which just released its first vintage last fall.
“It was a huge long process,” Thurston told the Herald. “I loved every minute of it. I spent years gathering most the beautiful things I could find wherever I was.”
She also is an artist whose work is featured in an exhibit at the Tri-Cities Airport in Pasco.
The kitchen tiles in the manor are similar to those spotted at a San Francisco candy shop and a staircase in the home is a replica of one at the Anthropologie store in Rockefeller Center in New York.
Her chandeliers, art pieces and light fixtures were acquired on Thurston’s travels, drawing from Art Deco influences.
The manor includes a built-in art studio, workout center with ballet bar and an in-home theater.
“I wanted it to be timeless, and I didn’t want it to be trendy or follow a fad. It is not a fake Italian palace,” Thurston said. “I picked things that I felt were really beautiful.”
Among her artistic touches are marble door trim and baseboards, walls painted in colors from a specialty Canadian company, a clawfoot tub with gilded faucet handles and a gleaming kitchen worthy of a top chef. There’s even a second smaller kitchen.
Thurston said she believes it will take a long time for the right buyer to come along and wanted to get a head start before her retirement in a few years.
“My intention is to be part of the winery for a long time,” Thurston said.
Wine club members of the young boutique Naoi Cailini Óga Winery are among the few given access to the estate.
Although public tours are not available, wine tasting is available 1-5 p.m. every Saturday.
This story was originally published October 26, 2020 at 5:00 AM.