The Tennessean
Williamson A.M. Real Estate
Friday, November
A mansion ahead of its time
Cornerstone on Granny White Pike pioneered many of the luxury features that have since grown popular on the high end
Brentwood – Construction began on Cornerstone – the five-acre, neo-classical estate at 504 Granny White Pike – 15 years ago, but it hardly looks dated outside or from the inside.
The almost 12,000-square foot elegant home includes many features often seen today but practically unheard of back then, such as an elevator, 8-foot-wide doorways and two dishwashers in the kitchen, said Lisa Culp Taylor, the real estate agent currently listing the Brentwood home for $4.5 million.
Such features were all part of the owners’ desires to make the house a stately residence, but a comfortable home as well. And their plan worked, as the home was recognized for its beauty on the 1993 Brentwood Tour of Homes, and now after a decade and a half, still feels like a practical, livable home.
At the time of building, the homeowner – who has asked not to be named – expected his mother to come live in the home. That necessitated the elevator, wide doorways and upstairs “in-laws” quarters with kitchen that have become increasingly common in home construction today, Taylor said.
Frequent entertaining required the extra dishwasher, a double over, walk-through pantry, butler’s pantry and large party closet downstairs.
But such practical concerns fade from memory as a visitor steps into the light-filled foyer and surveys the 38-foot-long, two-story great room with three sets of French doors and Palladian windows mirroring the same doors and windows on the front façade.
Two murals, by Shelbyville artist Jerry Ward, in a muted color palette and a two-story mantel with a mirror over the fireplace keep the feel of the room light and airy. The second-story walkway passes through the great room, but arched openings allow the light from each set of windows to pass through unhindered.
Two crystal chandeliers provide lighting and the French doors on the back of the house lead out to the veranda and the pool area, including a pool house with bath and kitchen.
Cornerstone was based on a plan by Scholz Design that was used for the National Association of Home Builders show house in the last 1980s. Homebuilder Bill King, of King Homes Inc., built the home, and as it is located along a main route from Maryland Farms and Brentwood Academy, the house drew attention from the community almost as soon as construction started. Neighbors would often stop by just to tour the construction site, Taylor said.