Each day, the stories are coming out that despite their odd personas and exorbitant wealth, Bill and Melinda Gates are dealing with some “normal people” problems that affect almost everyone that goes through a divorce.
Bitterness, anger, and contentious arguing over things they own. Including the one massive and mysterious piece of property that has been kept as secret as nuclear launch codes.
Xanadu 2.0, the 60,000 main family residence in Seattle…
How off limits and secretive is the home? Back in 2009, the Gates offered a private tour of the property for a charity auction. The tour sold for $35,000.
It has been called the most technically-advanced home in the world when it was completed in 1995, and Bill had actually been working on it for years, prior to his marriage with Melinda in 1994.
Through the years, little details have been leaked about the house, including a story in the New York Times back in 1995 that unveiled some incredible aspects of the property. At the time when Gates moved in, the property had your basic upgrades like a spa and a 60-foot pool, but it also had some very unique touches, including a stream for salmon, trout and other fish, along with a trampoline room, and a gym paneled with stone from a mountain peak in the Pacific Northwest.
The architects that designed Xanadu 2.0 also drew up the concept for the famous Apple cube at the Fifth Avenue location of the Apple Store. James Cutler and Peter Bohlin created a layout of the home that was divided into pavilions that were terraced into a 170-foot hill.
Construction of the home was temporarily stopped when Bill and Melinda got married, because according to what Melinda told Fortune Magazine in 2008, the house was “a bachelor’s dream and a bride’s nightmare.”
Melinda was able to wield her influence on the design and construction going forward, and hired Thierry Despont, the interior designer who was the creative driving force behind the restorations of the Palm Court at the Plaza Hotel in NYC and the Ritz in Paris.
Technologically speaking, it was in a completely different stratosphere when it was completed 26 years ago. Gates revealed in his book “The Road Ahead” that the house was his version of a smart home. Guests would be given badges that would communicate with sensors. So, as they navigated from room to room, lights would dim or brighten, the temperature of the room would adjust automatically, and music would play, depending on the personal preferences of the guests.
FUN FACTS:
The home has 7 bedrooms, but 18.5 bathrooms
It took 7 years to build
It’s nicknamed Xanadu 2.o, after the title character of Citizen Kane
The value of the home currently would be north of $130 million
Gates spent $2 million to buy the lot back in 188
300 construction workers were on on the project, including 100 electricians
The 60-foot pool is located inside it’s own 3,900-square-foot-building
There is a 2,300 square foot reception hall
The library is 2,100 square feet
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