An enormous mansion with carnival rides in the backyard currently holds the title of Missouri’s most expensive home.
On the market for $20 million, the 20,550-square-foot home in the west St. Louis suburb of Wentzville is built for everyday living. If everyday life means a ride on a private Ferris wheel.
“Even though it’s so grand and so spectacular, it also is just a family’s home. They didn’t build it for business purposes or anything other than to give their children, their community, and their family a place to be together,” says the listing agent, Saundra Pogrelis .
The owners built the seven-bedroom home in 2001, with plenty of input from the family’s five children about the amenities they desired. “After the house was built and they were designing the pool, [the father] let each of the five kids come up with a pool design, and then they had a vote for the best design,” Pogrelis explains.
A son won the contest, and the pool was built to his design with the help of a professional pool architect.
With fun as a top priority, the pool features two racing slides, a lazy river, a hot tub, a zero-entry area for little ones, and a swim-up bar area. The result is on par with what you might find at a five-star resort.
“Tell me the biggest and nicest resort that you’ve been to—like an all-inclusive in Mexico or the Caribbean—and that’s kind of how you feel when you’re in the pool,” says the agent. Across the pool from the house sits a fantastic playground area with two carnival-style rides: a Ferris wheel and a flying car ride. There’s also a custom-built swing set.
“It’s all hand-built, and the swings go so high. It would just be any kid’s dream to swing that high,” Pogrelis says.
The owner is also a horse lover, so it figures that the stables are elaborate, with an exterior that looks nothing like a barn. Because the home sits on 20 acres, there is plenty of room for galloping around.
A third structure on the property was built with a specific purpose in mind.