Newly renovated, historic William Rockhill Nelson ‘clubhouse’ in KC for sale: $1.48M
The renovation took 15 months, plus $200,000 more than expected.
There were break-ins, thefts and vandalism during construction. At one point, a careening car hopped the curb and plowed through the stacked limestone wall surrounding the yard, mangling the wrought iron fence before thudding to a stop.
Now, in what is being described as a “huge relief” by Kansas City developer and TikTok celebrity Johnny Youssef, his gutting and renovation of the William Rockhill Nelson “clubhouse” — a 6,800-square-foot clapboard home in view of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art — is finished.
This week it went up for sale. Asking price: $1.485 million. An open house for the home located in the affluent Rockhill Neighborhood, at 610 Emanuel Cleaver II Blvd., is set for Sunday.
“Obviously, the ultimate relief is going to happen when we actually get a buyer for it,” Youssef, 38, said. “Someone asked me, ‘Do you regret doing this?’ I would say it is still a privilege to be able to restore a beloved home in Kansas City.”
Built circa 1910 for Nelson in the style of an old-world lodge or cottage, the wealthy and powerful founder of The Kansas City Star used the home as a guesthouse or lodge for his friends. Its sunroom windows, which span the breadth of the second floor, makes it arguably one of the most visible homes in the neighborhood, set across from the southeast foot of the museum’s rolling lawn.
Born in 1841, Nelson died in 1915. The home was passed to other owners.
“I mean, I have probably had at least 20 people come to me and say they used to visit the house during Christmas,” Youssef said. A previous owner, he said, “use to fill the sunroom with Christmas trees.”
“So it is an honor to restore an iconic home from an iconic name. I’m just really proud of being able to do that.” Youssef said.
Julee Sanders lived in the 110-plus-year-old house with her from 1977 to 2022.
“We usually had six or seven trees decorated with our antique Christmas ornament collection,” she told The Star. “My father bought a one-horse sleigh at a farm auction and we’d haul that up to the sun porch and fill it with wrapped gifts and Santa Claus. . . .
“I do have numerous fond memories of my family’s house and the Rockhill neighborhood.”
Sanders previously said she was saddened to hear that the house was to be so completely renovated, with Youssef removing walls to create a more open floor plan.
“My father especially took great joy in restoring Nelson’s guesthouse to its original grandeur and spent most of his free time maintaining it and working in the rose garden,” she said. She won’t be attending the real estate open-house as she feels the house has “lost most of its historic charm and uniqueness.”
While the exterior of the house appears as it always has, Youssef has all but gutted the interior. He said he did work to retain the home’s special architectural features, including about 70% of the home’s original hardwood floors, its six fireplaces, wide center-hall staircase, curved wood banister and wall paneling.
The rest of the home — with six bedrooms, five bathrooms — has been redone: electric, plumbing, walls, insulation, foundation jacked up, floors leveled, 80 windows restored. Three fireplaces on the first floor have been turned to gas.
The third floor, which had been a mix of smaller rooms, has been opened to create an expansive bedroom and bath.
“Whoever gets this house is getting a brand new house in the shell of a beautiful, historic home. It’s all new,” Youssef said.
The former small kitchen was turned into a pantry. The new kitchen has custom cabinets, quartz countertops and a large central island.
Youssef and his wife, Abby, 29, purchased the home in 2023 for $400,000 at a bank sale.
His original notion was to invest $400,000 to $500,000 to redo it and sell it for between $1 million and $1.3 million. Youssef intended to use the profit from the home’s sale to help fund the renovation of the Broadway Baptist Church in Westport, which he bought in 2024.
His plan was to turn it into a wedding venue called Melrose Abbey. Originally projected to be a $1.5 million project, Melrose Abbey cost $3 million to complete, a price that includes the $700,000 sale price for the church. The Youssefs held a grand opening in July.
Phase 2 of the wedding venue is to include four hotel rooms at the rear of the church. The rooms are still under construction. Youssef still hopes to use the proceeds from the sale of the Rockhill house to help finish the hotel rooms.
“So we’re finishing Phase 2 right now,” Youssef said. “I’m definitely hoping we can sell it (the clubhouse) soon, because that money will get the plan done.”
This story was originally published October 18, 2024 at 4:30 PM.
