Surreal Estate: $7.5 million for an Etobicoke Tudor with a driveway made from old streetcar tracks

Neighbourhood: Edenbridge–Humber Valley Price: $7,500,000 Size: 4,000 square feet plus a 2,500-square-foot basement Bedrooms: 4+2 Bathrooms: 4 Real estate agent: Ashley Shaw, Sotheby’s International Realty

The Place

A four-plus-two-bedroom, four-bathroom Tudor just south of Royal York and Eglinton. Backing onto St. George’s Golf and Country Club, the house comes with original checkerboard floors, four wood-burning fireplaces made with limestone from the Credit Valley, Douglas fir beams and a driveway composed of cobblestones once used for Toronto streetcar tracks. It’s within walking distance of the Humber River and the future Eglinton Crosstown, and motorists are a short drive from both the 427 and the 401.

The History

This property was built in the 1960s by a family of builders. They designed it to pay homage to the neighbourhood’s many century homes as well as the Old Mill Inn. Typical of the Tudor style, it’s equipped with artisanal timbering, wood carvings, copper eavestroughs and decorative stucco.

Related:$2.4 million for the house from Kenny vs. Spenny, a jaunty Victorian in Moss Park

The Tour

Here’s the first of the home’s two driveways. The TTC sold those old streetcar cobblestones to the owners during the design stage.

A gateway—made of wrought iron and crowned by an antique lantern from Spain—defines the entrance.

This is the other driveway, on the west side of the house, which leads to the underground garage.

Intricate carvings adorn the façade, including those of Irish shamrocks, Scottish thistle, English roses and the ship that the owner’s ancestors used when immigrating to Canada.

Original checkerboard tiles line the foyer.

Opposite the foyer is the stained-oak library, with a marble-and-limestone wood-burning fireplace.

A reverse angle showcases the huge windows and ornate coffered ceilings.

Next door is the living room. At two storeys, it has cathedral ceilings, more Douglas fir beams and an antique chandelier from Europe. The layout here is a box bay, with windows facing both the front lawn and the backyard.

Here’s the family room, with built-in cabinets concealing a wet bar and sink.

The fireplace, with facing benches, may be the home’s coolest feature. It’s modelled after the Old Mill Inn’s fireplace in the grand dining room.

There’s that family ship again, this time as part of the fireplace mantle. Future residents will find quirky carvings hidden all over the property.

See?

But not everything in this Tudor is old world. Take a look at this modern kitchen at the rear of the home.

The dining area overlooks the golf course.

Now for the formal dining room, with French doors and exposed brick.

Moving upstairs reveals the second-floor landing, illuminated by another antique Spanish lantern.

The main suite comes with a private terrace.

And here’s the way into the ensuite bathroom and walk-in closet.

This magnificent closet is dedicated to shoes.

A quick detour underground highlights the garage.

Here’s the main suite’s private terrace, as seen from outside. The balcony is copper and the shingles are cedar.

At the centre of  the courtyard fountain stands a bronze angel statue from Pompei.

In the backyard: mature native trees in species such as oak, beech, chestnut, walnut and maple—living remnants of the Humber Valley River forest, part of the Carolinian zone.

Lastly, here’s a majestic shot of the home and country club.

Have a home that’s about to hit the market? Send your property to realestate@torontolife.com.