1929 Champ Soleil Asks $15.8M in Newport, RI (PHOTOS)

January 6, 2021

1929 Champ Soleil Asks $15.8M in Newport, RI

$15,800,000 | Built 1929 | 13,428 Sq. Ft. | 11 Beds | 8.5+ Baths | 5.53 Acres

601 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, Rhode Island, United States, 02840

One of the last grand houses to be built towards the end of Newport, Rhode Island’s Gilded Age is on the market for $15.8 million. Champ Soleil, set on 5.53 acres on Bellevue Avenue, was designed by Polhemus & Coffin who drew inspiration from the hunting lodge at Versailles, La Lanterne, and was built in 1929 for Lucy Drexel Dahlgren, the granddaughter of Joseph W. Drexel. According to Mansions of the Gilded Age, “The second owner was Roberta & Robert Goelet, who had the house enlarged and decorated by the famed french decorating firm Maison Jansen. The estate was later owned by Russell B. Aitken and his wife Annie Laurie Aitken.” The Daily Mail revealed, “McKinney-Zarrilli and his husband, real estate developer Kenneth Zarrilli, 68, first moved into the sprawling mansion in 2003.” The couple told the Wall Street Journal that they spent nearly $10 million renovating and restoring the mansion.

Set behind wrought iron gates, the main house extends 13,428 square feet with an elegant ball room, formal dining room adorned with a spectacular Neo-Baroque chandelier, sunlit terrace, a library built of Louis XV pine panels imported from France, large kitchen & butler’s pantry and 3,000 square foot home theatre. There are a total of 11 bedrooms and 8.5+ bathrooms. The 5.53 acre property, designed by Umberto Innocenti, features fragrant rose gardens, colossal copper beech trees, a swimming pool and one of the finest croquet courts in the country. The grounds also include the original gate and carriage houses. Featuring the latest in green design and technology including 26 internet-controlled zones for heating and cooling efficiency, state-of-the-art security, fire protection and audio/visual system. Champ Soleil is on the market for $15.8 million with Judy Chace with Mott & Chace Sotheby’s International Realty.