Juergen Rust spent many years working as an architect, having even travelled all the way to Saudi Arabia to build a private residence for Prince Faisal. However, it’s the property he built for his family that stands out. His home and former bed and breakfast at 496083 Grey Road 2 is now on the market for the first time since it was built in 2000.
Born and raised in Germany, Juergen studied architecture in Vienna and Munich before coming to Canada in 1967 to work. Eventually, he became a citizen, and worked on residential, commercial and industrial projects in Toronto, Texas, Florida, Oman, and Saudi Arabia, until finally, in 1986, he opened up his own architecture company, J.H. Rust Architect Inc.
Though he lived and worked in the GTA, he always loved nature, so when he and his wife serendipitously stumbled upon acres of farmland for sale in the Blue Mountains on a family vacation, they knew instantly they wanted to stay there.
“The location is fantastic. Look to the north and you see the Georgian Bay, look to the west and see the hills of Beaver Valley, look to the south and you have a number of hills, and towards the east, it’s the woodlands where the sun goes up. It’s just a breathtaking experience being on this land,” said Juergen.
“I was interested in architectural history in Europe and the one that fascinated me most was the old timber frame construction, in which not a single nail was used, and they’d put it together with plugs and pre-cut timbers,” said Juergen.
So, following this inspiration, construction on the home started in 1999 and was completed in 2000 without the use of any nails. “The only nails in the house are the ones we used later to hang up pictures,” said Juergen. The home was even featured in Canadian Homes and Cottages magazine in 2001, in which it was described as “sophisticated country”.
When asked if he faced any problems during the home building process, Juergen shared some helpful wisdom that’s not just applicable to architects: “I didn’t have problems, I had challenges, and challenges want to be solved. Anything you see as a problem is actually a challenge. Anything you do in architecture, as small as it is, there are always challenges thrown at you, so you just have to take it piece by piece.”
The property acted not only as a family home but also as a 5-star bed and breakfast, named Ravenna Hill, which was his wife’s idea and operated on the lower level.
The B&B portion was designed with comfort in mind; Juergen remembered staying in European B&Bs and having to share one bathroom with five other guests. As a result, each of the three lower-level bedrooms has a private ensuite bathroom and plenty of breathing room.
Consistent themes in Juergen’s architecture are space and comfort. “What I feel is absolutely necessary is you have to have breathing space,” he said. This breathing space is evident in the home’s cathedral-high ceilings and expansive 6,931 ft. of living space.
Thanks to Juergen’s love of nature, the property embraces its environment and welcomes a connection to the land. “When we bought the land it was complete grassland and nothing else. So we asked the Ministry of Lands and Forest for some trees and they sent 4,000 to be planted. Now the driveway is surrounded nicely by them,” said Juergen.
“It’s not only beautiful looking at the nature here, it’s beautiful by living here with it.”
In addition to the main house, the 125-acre estate has two supplementary buildings: a barn and four large horse stalls. The interior of the home is filled with charming details, really bringing to life the “sophisticated country” theme, including a handmade maple staircase, hand-painted tiles, a pine country kitchen and stucco interior walls.
Whether the next owner is a rancher, a business owner, or a family doesn’t matter to Juergen, what matters is that they can appreciate the property and be happy here. “In the end, the dream is to find someone who loves the land the way we loved it,” he said.
To see more photos and the asking price of this home, check out the listing here.
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