“Spaceship House” Lands on Market in Chicago Suburb Mettawa

Anyone looking for a 5,000-square-foot waterfront spaceship house is in luck with this Mettawa listing.

The 3-bedroom, 3-bathroom geodesic concrete home is perched on a private pond surrounded by 5.35 acres of wooded trails nestled between two nature preserves, the Wall Street Journal reported. The home at 25421 North Saint Mary’s Road is on a private listing network for $3.25 million, or $626 per square foot.

Mettawa is known for its horse farms and low turnover, which keeps inventory tight. Listing agent Donna Mercier of Coldwell Banker Realty told the outlet that homes there typically trade below $6.25 million and attract buyers looking for privacy close to Chicago’s North Shore.

The “Spaceship House” was built in 1979 by Peter M. Vanderklaauw, who built several UFO-shaped houses.

When seller Bob Hollar first pulled into the driveway of a white, circular home in Mettawa nearly 30 years ago, his first thought was less admiration than disbelief, he told the outlet.

That was 1996, when Hollar, a retired healthcare executive, bought the futuristic residence for $525,000 — largely for the one feature that did impress him: room for his 145-pound Leonberger dog. Over the years, the property grew on him. The pond, fruit trees and sprawling yard turned the oddball structure into a quiet retreat about 35 miles north of downtown Chicago.

The house evolved along with the seller’s life. When Hollar’s wife, Lisa Giles, moved in during the early 2000s, the couple embarked on renovations, beginning with the most radical move — removing an indoor pool that cut through the center of the two-level home. The couple replaced it with livable space, added wood floors, modernized the kitchen and reworked the outdoor areas with patios, landscaping and a small waterfall.

The property also features a bridge leading to an island in the pond, where the couple likes to drink wine by the firepit and listen to bullfrogs. Their expansive vegetable garden produces everything from beets to brussels sprouts, and for years, the grounds have been their weekend project and sanctuary.

With a new dog that doesn’t travel well and a second home on Kiawah Island in South Carolina, Hollar and Giles said it was time to simplify.

— Eric Weilbacher