Post by Tomspy77 on Jan 14, 2011 12:27:29 GMT -6
Looming over a barren industrial neighborhood locals call skid row, stands Gertrude Zachary's castle.
Rising like a fortress between a rescue mission and the railroad tracks, the estate is encircled by a wall 10 feet high. Within is a pool, courtyard garden, guest home and a 8,500-square-foot main home with four turrets each rising 50 feet into the air.
Ms. Zachary's home, across from a shuttered restaurant and abutting the parking lot of a raucous bar, is the only apparent residence in the desolate neighborhood. Lush blue-green velvet curtains and centuries-old door and window frames overlook parking lots, an overpass and a billboard advertising Ms. Zachary's antique and jewelry business. Ms. Zachary's daughter, Erica Hatchell, who lives in a more affluent area, said her mother couldn't be dissuaded from building here. "Nobody else would have made that decision," she said.
"I like downtown," said Ms. Zachary, 73, noting that cities such as Paris and New York have homes in industrial areas. Married and divorced three times, she lives in her estate with her Shih Tzu named Zipper.
realestate.yahoo.com/promo/woman-builds-french-style-mansion-on-skid-row.html
Rising like a fortress between a rescue mission and the railroad tracks, the estate is encircled by a wall 10 feet high. Within is a pool, courtyard garden, guest home and a 8,500-square-foot main home with four turrets each rising 50 feet into the air.
Ms. Zachary's home, across from a shuttered restaurant and abutting the parking lot of a raucous bar, is the only apparent residence in the desolate neighborhood. Lush blue-green velvet curtains and centuries-old door and window frames overlook parking lots, an overpass and a billboard advertising Ms. Zachary's antique and jewelry business. Ms. Zachary's daughter, Erica Hatchell, who lives in a more affluent area, said her mother couldn't be dissuaded from building here. "Nobody else would have made that decision," she said.
"I like downtown," said Ms. Zachary, 73, noting that cities such as Paris and New York have homes in industrial areas. Married and divorced three times, she lives in her estate with her Shih Tzu named Zipper.
realestate.yahoo.com/promo/woman-builds-french-style-mansion-on-skid-row.html