Posted Jan 11, 2008, 12:29 PM
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It's Hammer Time
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Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Hamilton
Posts: 19,954
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Sitting on top of the city
Amberlee Mcateer
Special to The Hamilton Spectator
(Jan 11, 2008)
Sixty metres above James Street, Helena Donaldson has a unique view as she tidies the kitchen of her two-storey penthouse suite in the historic Pigott Building.
"The view from the top is simply incredible," she said. "I can see all of Hamilton.
"We can literally look from the escarpment right down to the bay. How amazing is that?"
Donaldson, a financial planner, and her husband George Seehaver, a steel fabricator, traded in their 10-hectare escarpment property about three years ago for the condominium lifestyle, after their four children grew up and moved out.
"We're busy, working people," she said. "I don't want a garden anymore. I want to be able to just lock the door and go to work and travel when I want."
The couple is selling their home in the Art Deco building near the corner of James and Main streets in favour of a larger condominium in Burlington with a rooftop terrace -- one of the few features absent in their penthouse suite.
The original gold and green elevator car opens directly into the two-storey Pigott penthouse, which has porcelain floors, gothic ceilings and a wood-burning fireplace. A wrought-iron staircase leads to the master bedroom, nestled in the very peak of the building.
With 32 windows in the 1,835-square-foot space, the views include the Toronto skyline and Hamilton's downtown. An iron beam in the living room is a reminder of the original structure, built eight decades ago.
Hamilton's first skyscraper, the Pigott's unusual architecture stands out. Constructed with New York City gothic style influences, the limestone building was used for offices until it was transformed into condominiums in the 1980s.
"This is definitely a unique space," said Carissa Spithoff, one of a dozen real estate sales people who have been showing the suite since September. "In terms of its view, history, architectural detail, this place is truly special."
In order to determine the $549,900 price tag, Spithoff said her agency looked at suites in Burlington, Oakville and Toronto because "there's literally nothing like it in this city."
Potential buyers, usually "young professionals or empty nesters," have included Stoney Creek dwellers and Torontonians.
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