Eleven years and $22M in price cuts later, Winnetka mansion finally in contract

All it took was more than $22 million in price cuts to find a buyer for a massive Winnetka mansion that’s been on the block during two recessions.

A six-bedroom, 17,000-square-foot mansion in Winnetka that debuted on the market in 2009 is under contract, according to Crain’s. Originally listed for $32 million, the property at 68 Locust Road went into contract on June 5, last priced at $9.5 million, the outlet reported.

Sherwin Jarol, who is CEO of Chicago-based real estate firm SMB/Bradley, and his wife Deborah, tapped Landry Design Group to build the home, known as Le Grand Reve, after buying the site for $2.6 million. In 2011, the sellers told the Wall Street Journal that the house cost over $40 million to build. Landry is known for developing McMansion-style homes for celebrities in Los Angeles.

It’s unclear who the buyer is for the property, called Le Grand Reve. The Jarols’ agent, @properties’ Jena Radnay, did not comment. But in January, she told the Chicago Tribune that she believed it was “underpriced” for the amount of work put into it and the quality of the build.

“It’s the finest-built house in the Midwest,” Radnay said. “I have shown it many times in November and December. … Those that have a high level of knowledge of what things cost to construct know that [Le Grand Reve] is a phenomenal value.”

The home, designed in a Mediterranean style, features a domed ceiling, double-stairs with iron railings, marble floors, a paved motor court with fountain, a swimming pool and spa, chef’s kitchen with a restaurant-style bar and a nine-car garage.

The sale represents another disappointing mansion trade in Winnetka. In March, a 12,000-square-foot mansion in the town sold for $3.2 million, half of what the owner Robert F. Steel paid for it during the Great Recession.

Those still on the hunt for an opulent mansion in the Chicago area still have a wealth of potential options. Among them are Michael Jordan’s Highland Park mansion, forever on the market for $14.9 million; the Parillo mansion in Lincoln Park that’s listed at $45 million, the highest price in the state; and the 30,000-square-foot Middle Easern-influenced mansion in Burr Ridge that was listed $6 million before it was removed from the market. [Crain’s] — James Kleimann