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CommentsMinnesota Manor
This Prior Lake home offers something for every member of a large family
By Ruth Paarmann
Photo by Jon Huelskamp, Landmark Photography
“When you have an active family of this size, your home must be multiple use,” Garry explains. “You don’t have time to go to the health club, so you build one. You build in a home theater.”
And you use super-tough materials. Tupy and business partner Ted Kowalski selected hickory millwork and doors, heavy-duty tile, and granite countertops. Vaulted ceilings and natural stone accents and fireplaces add character throughout the 8,000-square-foot home.
More than 4 acres surround the Prior Lake estate and ensure endless activities for the 10 children living at home, plus skiing and various trails are nearby. The Tupys included a four-car garage, as well as a carriage house for a motor home.
Below the garage, the home gym contains all the dancing, spinning, and lifting equipment the family needs. “This home was built for activity. There’s a trail that leads out to a bonfire area, basketball court, and athletic field for baseball and soccer,” Garry says.
The exterior, best described as Minnesota lodge flair, features stone pillars flanking a dramatic vaulted entry. Arched hickory windows top the front door, which opens to a formal living room. Rich woodland colors and a vaulted ceiling add character here and throughout. Traffic can take several paths, accessing the formal dining room, lower-level staircase, or other main-floor rooms. A stone arch and portrait niche announce the main-level wing that includes the owners’ suite and nursery. Garry and Amy can step onto the deck off their suite to watch stars and later warm up by the fireplace.
Photo by Jon Huelskamp
Landmark Photography
The Tupys’ four sons have an upper-level loft of their own. This clever solution includes white birch wainscoting up the stairwell to a carpeted study room. A hallway zips past a bathroom and closet. In the bedroom, built-in bunks sleep four.
The lower-level family room offers pool access, a fireplace, and an under-stair reading nook. Two customized girls’ suites and a guest room skirt the area. A specially engineered utility room shields the family from foul weather. The recreation area features hand-scraped oak flooring and antiqued wainscoting around the billiard table and soda fountain, where candy jars and syrup bottles sit atop the marble counters and quarter-sawn oak cabinetry.
The home theater features a 106-inch screen and eight durable seats to handle wear and tear, plus more beanbag seating for the younger viewers. Elegant carpet and upholstered panels optimize acoustics and comfort.
Outdoors, stamped concrete borders the pool. The four-season party house near the pool, designed in a vibrant Key West color palette, provides a full-service space with a wood burning fireplace, kitchen, bath, and an audio/video monitoring system. Throughout the home, the active and formal elements balance well. “We’re very good at making the whole package come together,” Garry says.
Ruth Paarmann is an Iowa-based writer and former Minnesota resident.
Builder
JB Woodfitter & Associates, LLC
Home location
Prior Lake
Suppliers
Cityscape Painting
Hedberg Landscape & Masonry Supplies
James Hardie Siding Products
Nautilus Fitness
Orion Home Systems
Victory Tops and Services
11 ISSUES (1 YEAR)
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