Byline: Kathleen Poliquin Staff writer
Americans seem to have a hard time stepping away from the workday grind, but we shouldn't underestimate the restorative powers of enjoying our privacy, especially when surrounded by natural beauty.
A secluded home at 55 Fivaz Pond Drive in Volney, on the market for $439,900, offers generous helpings of both privacy and nature.
The owners of the 4,500-square-foot Victorian-style transitional, John and Judy Bertrand, value their privacy. The 1,900-foot-long, paved private road that winds through the woods to their 10-acre property is the first clue. They also make their feelings clear with a prominent sign that states: "Private. Keep Out. Bertrand."
"This is not a typical drive-by property," John said. Prospective buyers may only view the property after making an appointment with his real estate agent. He does not want uninvited visitors to disturb the other resident on the private road, the owner of the surrounding 120 acres, he said.
"I have deeded right of way out to the road, but it's not a public street," John said.
After living in Cicero for 45 years, surrounded by neighbors, John and Judy investigated moving to the Adirondacks almost six years ago. While searching for properties on the Internet, the couple found this home, which offered Adirondack-like living for a reasonable price, and they grabbed it.
Four-acre, spring-fed Fivaz Pond is roughly 15 feet deep at the back corner, and has been stocked with blue gill and large mouth bass. John describes seeing the painted turtles leave the pond to lay their eggs in the spring; watching and listening to colorful birds in the summer; enjoying the ducks and geese who rest up on their southward journeys in the fall; and observing the white tail deer and wild turkeys strolling by in the winter.
The Bertrands luxuriate in the property's seclusion and natural beauty, but unlike the Adirondacks, they are within a few minutes' drive of malls and supermarkets. The home is just five minutes from the Oswego County airport, making it an ideal getaway for a buyer from a metropolitan area with the means to fly back and forth, John said.
Behind the home, a blue stone patio with a fieldstone fireplace and a tiny pond, its waterfalls splashing down six elevations toward Fivaz Pond, is a haven for the harried and hardworking. A wrap-around wooden deck widens at the corner to accommodate a portable gazebo with detachable screens.
The gourmet kitchen and great room/dining room have space and architectural features galore. The kitchen has a long oak island with built-in bookshelves, wine cooler and draft-beer system. The appliances, which stay with the house, include a built-in, side-by-side stainless steel refrigerator, a four-burner gas stove with a grill and a griddle, a combination convection and conventional oven, a proofing oven and a warming drawer. The lower cabinets have solid surface white counters with an undermount, extra-deep double stainless steel sink. Some of the upper cabinets have glass fronts. The kitchen has a 5- by 8-foot pantry.
The dining area easily accommodates a 9-foot table that seats 12. A double French door provides access to the deck and patio, and large, paned windows topped with paned transoms provide natural light and views. Nestled in an arched alcove on one side of the room is a cast-iron gas stove that looks like a free-standing wood stove.
The first floor has two half baths - one in the ceramic-tiled mudroom, and the other adjacent to the kitchen.
The home's centerpiece is the two-story, light-filled foyer, with its leaded glass front door and side lights and oak staircase. A crystal chandelier overhead and three coordinating sconces add sparkle. The space is an ideal location for the couple's 12-foot Christmas tree, John said.
One of the rooms off the foyer, on the other side of French doors, is the couple's home office. The office has built-in oak bookcases and plenty of space for desks, credenzas and file cabinets.
Also off the foyer, in the turret, is the sunken formal parlor, which has five sets of double oak-paned windows and transoms.
A step up from the parlor, through a wide oak-trimmed doorway, is the family room, where sliding doors provide access to the wrap-around deck and windows overlook the pond. Wall-to-wall carpeting and a wood-burning fireplace create a comfortable place in which to relax and enjoy the built-in surround sound. The home also has a central audio system and 10 sets of speakers as well as volume controls both inside and outdoors.
A short staircase connects the family room to the foyer's main staircase, which leads to three bedrooms and two full baths on the second floor and two bedrooms and one full bath on the third.
The second floor has a sunroom in the turret, a laundry room with a chute from the third floor, and a master suite with a gas fireplace and whirlpool tub.
The home, built in 1991, is on a well, with reserve water tanks that hold a total of 500 gallons, and has a septic system. The home has natural gas-fueled hot water heat and an optional wood-burning boiler, central vacuum and an alarm system.
Now that Judy s two sons are on their own, the Bertrands plan to downsize and stay in the area.
For more information or an appointment to view the property, contact Shelly Sachel of Great Lakes Realty, at 592-8864.
If you have a nominee for House of the Week, email Kathleen Poliquin at home@syracuse.com, tell her what is special about the house for sale and include a low-resolution digital photo or two. Please include a phone number, so she can call you. She's looking for houses in all price ranges.
At a glance
TYPE: Transitional.
PRICE: $439,900.
LOCATION: Volney.
SIZE: 4,500 square feet.
WATER FRONTAGE: 271 feet.
LOT SIZE: 10 acres.
MONTHLY MORTGAGE: $1,827.
TAXES: $11,804.
BUILT: 1991.
SCHOOL DISTRICT: Fulton.
CAPTION(S):
Photos by Ellen M. Blalock / The Post-Standard
A MECHANIZED waterfall at 55 Fivaz Pond Road, Volney, begins at a small pond set in the blue stone patio and flows down six levels toward Fivaz Pond.
THE DINING room, which easily accommodates a 9-foot table, has large windows overlooking the waterfalls and pond. Double French doors open to the wooden deck and blue stone patio.
THE TWO-STORY foyer, which is 18 feet from floor to ceiling, has an oak staircase, a crystal chandelier and three crystal sconces.
THE KITCHEN has stainless steel appliances, which will stay with the house, including a four-burner gas stove with a grill and griddle.
THE WRAP-AROUND wooden deck, which overlooks the pond, widens at the corner to accommodate a portable gazebo with detachable screens that will stay with the house.
AN OAK-TRIMMED doorway from the foyer opens to the sunken formal parlor, located in the first floor of the turret. Ten windows and transoms provide natural light and views of the wooded property.
See a gallery of photos of the House of the Week at syracuse.com/homes.
MAP: House of the week. 55 Fivaz Pond Dr. Volney. The Post-Standard
No comments:
Post a Comment