A large brand-new house with views of Minnehaha Creek in Edina is seeking a buyer — but it wasn't originally intended to be a spec home.
TC Homebuilders owner Tony Giannakakis built it for himself and his family in the South Harriet Park neighborhood where he grew up.
"We were going to live there," he said of the new house. "I used the best of the best."
That included premium construction and insulation, luxury appliances, smart technology, heated floors in the garage and even in the dog-washing station.
To maximize views of the creek, he installed lift-and-slide triple doors in the dining room and living room. "You feel like you're outside when you're inside," he said.
Working with DFP Planning & Design, Giannakakis carefully chose finishes and materials, including rift-sawn and quartered white oak flooring, and a gleaming white-on-white kitchen with quartzite countertops and a Cararra marble backsplash with a Laura Ashley tile insert.
On the lower level, he built a distinctive bar using reclaimed barn wood sourced from a farm near Milwaukee.
Giannakakis even included an extra-large, soundproof closet in the master suite so that he could retreat there when he awoke during the night and watched videos without disturbing his wife.
The family previously lived in an older rambler on the site of the new house. Giannakakis bought the rambler 18 years ago because he loved the location, near the creek and just four blocks from 50th and France.
The lot, which is large for the neighborhood at .4 acre, backs up to wooded land owned by a church, which makes the backyard feel private.
Giannakakis bought a "temporary house" in another part of Edina for his family to live in during demolition of the rambler and construction of their new house.
But something unexpected happened. Giannakakis' wife and kids got very attached to the new neighborhood and its school. They want to stay.
So he put the 5,598-square-foot house with five bedrooms and six bathrooms on the market for $2.795 million. "I'm a little disappointed I didn't get to live there," he said. "I worked that hard on it."
Tony Giannakakis, 952-926-6100, who also is a licensed real estate agent, has the listing.
