See inside $500K historic Kansas City home. Can you guess where they put the indoor pool?
If you miss the water in land-locked Kansas City, look no further than this one-of-a-kind historic house.
Located near the Kansas City Museum, in the Scarritt Point area of northeast Kansas City, the home is 4,759 square feet. The house has three bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms, in addition to three garage spaces.
Originally the home of doctor and amateur magician Theodore Blakesley, the house at 3232 Windsor Ave. first appeared on the city directory in 1910, according to a June 7, 1983, Kansas City Star article. The property is listed for $500,000 by real estate agent Dylan Van Gerpen of Keller Williams KC North on the Kansas City Regional Association of Realtor’s website.
The archived story described the home’s exterior: “Facing the sun from a high terrace and all painted white, this house looks slightly Spanish, but more convincingly cubist.”
“The home is really interesting. Maybe a little too weird for a lot of people,” Van Gerpen said in an interview with The Star on Friday.
In the more than six months since Van Gerpen listed the property, the residence has been featured on various Zillow Gone Wild posts on Reddit. Despite the online buzz, Van Gerpen said these posts have failed to drum up business.
A Jan. 7, 1940, advertisement in The Kansas City Star described the house as an “Ultra Modern Bungalow” with “All These Up-to-Minute Features.”
Here’s a look inside:
An unfilled indoor pool
One of the most unusual parts of the house is the indoor pool, tucked under the front porch. According to a 1940 advertisement, the pool was 10-feet-by-30-feet of heated water. Van Gerpen said he was “uncomfortable” with the pool’s underground location and 6 foot depth.
As to whether someone could swim in the pool over 70 years later, Van Gerpen said, “I was told that it would hold water, but nobody knows that the pumps or anything would work.”
Ship shape room
On the main floor, the house continues with the watery theme with a ship room. Van Gerpen said it was a mid-century renovation. You can look upon the ship’s wheel and nautical built-ins from the central living space.
Bathroom with a view
If you go into the main bathroom, be sure to check above you. The high ceilings leave space for a balcony looking out on the bathroom. You can reach this private perch by taking stairs located in a different bathroom.
Plenty of space for parties
Back in the basement, you can host a crowd in two entertaining spaces, which Van Gerpen called the billiards room and the party hall. The 1940 advertisement promoted the “two-tone walnut panel recreation room.”
