Hot House: 1023 S. Curley Street, Baltimore, MD 21224
Loft style, green renovation of two commercial buildings, circa 1880 and 1913, into one 5,600 sq. ft space with 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths. Open plan living, dining, kitchen space. Concrete and original longleaf pine floors, open fireplace with steel hood, hot tub, skylights, roof deck with wet bar. Zoned heat (natural gas, radiant and solar), zoned central a/c. Cable ready, security system, attached 5-car garage: $1,150,000
What: Former Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps spent the last of his bachelor years here. Now 30, he has recently moved to Arizona (with fiancee Nicole Johnson) to train for the Summer Olympics in Rio. In May, he will become the dad of an “already above-average size boy.” Meanwhile, his house is on the market, at an above-average, but not staggering price for Canton. Featured in Baltimore Fishbowl as a Hot House in January 2012 (before Phelps bought it), the house also appeared as a WSJ House of the Day and in a detailed piece in the Baltimore Sun that October. Built by real estate property manager Andrew McQuaid during his own bachelor days, there is a definite masculine quality to the place — maybe the enormous scale (20′ ceilings downstairs), maybe the dark-hued paint job, maybe the big, roof-top hot tub. Whatever, it is a luxurious urban industrial space, and there are not many like it in Canton (yet).
Where: Just off O’Donnell Square in Canton — not very near the water, but with water views from the rooftop deck.
Why: Hot tub on rooftop deck is pretty awesome and wet bar takes the party potential to near epic levels.
Why Not: Possibility that Canton bar scene could become too tempting — it happened to Michael….
Would Suit: Exelon exec (one bought his last house in Fells Point).
NB: Last sold, February 2012 for $1,030,000.
