New ground: `Street' draws record entry

Christopher Homes' entry in the 2004 Street of Dreams show in MacDonald Highlands has set a record for the Seattle-based producer of luxury-home tours. According to officials, Aria is the largest and most expensive custom residence ever featured in Street of Dreams, which has a 19-year history of more than 70 shows in North America.

Aria measures 9,553 square feet and is listed for sale at $5.9 million including furnishings and accessories, but excluding artwork displayed exclusively for the show.

"We wanted to create a one-of-a-kind showpiece for Street of Dreams, as well as an exquisite home that demonstrates the level of quality custom clients can expect when they work with Christopher Homes," chief executive Christopher Stuhmer said. "Aria makes one magnificent statement on contemporary living, but with the accompaniment of multiple ideas and functions throughout. It is a home that offers every imaginable luxury and convenience, working equally well for simple day-to-day living or entertaining on the grandest of scales."

The builder's team included Scheurer Architects, Bloomingdale's Home and NUVIS Landscape Architects. Artwork was provided by Art de Vignettes Fine Art Gallery.

MacDonald Highlands is a hillside community in Henderson. Aria's home site features views of the city, mountains and the 18th fairway of DragonRidge Country Club.

Interior highlights include a master suite with a retreat and an elevated sleeping area with seamless windows to maximize the view. The residence also features three other bedrooms, each with a bath and closet.

Added features include a home office, great room, formal living room, and dining room with wine storage. A sky room and a roof garden enhance the view.

A wellness center is equipped with a fitness room, steam shower, massage table and pedicure chair. The center opens to an outdoor zen garden with a spa.

Other luxuries include five fireplaces, five full baths, two powder rooms, four wet bars, dual staircases, a command center, an indoor climate-controlled sports court, an interior courtyard with an indoor/outdoor koi pond, a covered patio and balcony, an infinity edge swimming pool, two gas fire pits, numerous water features and a four-car garage.

"As you tour this home, you will sense a subtle Asian flair that complements the architecture aesthetically and brings it all together spiritually," Erika Geiser, marketing executive for the builder, said.

"This home was fully `feng shui'd' to create harmony, good health, wealth and peace of mind, and the five elements of the theory -- fire, earth, metal, water and wood -- are evident throughout."

She noted that the contemporary design is evidenced by the curved metal roofing, exterior metal accents, a stainless steel front door, a staircase with a stainless steel handrail and glass panels, and brushed aluminum I-beams on the wooden ceiling in the great room.

Complementing the showcase residence are limestone flooring; marble and granite slab counter surfaces; wood ceiling treatments; concealable sliding glass doors; ebony kitchen cabinetry; and the latest in audio, video, security and communication systems. The kitchen contains stainless-steel appliances including four ovens, two dishwashers, a Sub-Zero refrigerator and freezer, and a built-in cappuccino maker.

Geiser pointed out that outdoor living areas can be accessed from nearly every room in the home.

"We expect visitors to linger for quite a while in Aria," she said. "They will need ample time to appreciate the beauty and elegance of this home, and to get a sense of the lifestyle it will provide for its future owner."

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