‘Empire’ Mansion in Barrington Hills Heads to Auction

A Barrington Hills mansion that appeared in the hit show “Empire” is going to the auction block after failing to sell the old fashioned way — for all 10 years it has been on the market.

The 17,6000-square-foot estate at 45 Lakeview Lane, owned by Sam and Geralyn Cecola, is scheduled to be auctioned off July 15, although if offers come in too low, the couple can back away from a sale, Crain’s reported.

The 8.3-acre property has been on a rollercoaster ride since first hitting the market in 2013. It was first listed at $15.3 million. In 2019, the mansion was returned to the market at a reduced price of $9.5 million, and the ask was eventually lowered again to $7.5 million. The house was under contract in September 2021 and April 2022, but both of those deals fell apart and never closed.

A conventional buyer can still snag the house for $9.5 million, but the Cecolas are ready for the saga to end, leading them to go the auction route, according to Michael La Fido of eXp Realty, who served as the listing agent.

In “Empire,” which aired from 2015 to 2020, the estate was used as the lavish home of Lucius Lyon, the patriarch of a high-profile music industry family, played by Terrence Howard. The boat dock on the property was built for the show and is still intact.

Sam Cecola is the longtime owner and operator of the Admiral Theatre strip club on Lawrence Avenue. The Cecolas bought the lot for $200,000 in 2001, but the construction costs are not public knowledge.

The six-bedroom, 10-bathroom house has multiple terraces and colonnades overlooking a swimming pool and fountains. It sits between two lakes, boasting large formal rooms, an elevator and a six-car garage.

Elsewhere in Chicagoland, a 12,300-square-foot mansion in Winnetka is also being put up for auction, with minimum bids starting at $2.5 million. But unlike 45 Lakeview, that property was seized by a lender, as it was on the brink of foreclosure.

— Quinn Donoghue