MAGGIE ON A MISSION
A ccording to new owner Maggie Whitt, “It was called Villa la Cresta at the time that I bought it. I’m just shortening it to Villa!
“It’s an awesome house! It has this… presence to it!
Located on Caribel Trail, the Villa she refers to is, arguably, the largest house in the Red River. It’s nearly 6,000 square feet, with three floors, plus a new outdoor deck that is being added to the back of the property above the roof and into the mountainside.
There are four garages with “ginormous” storage rooms at the back of each garage that add another 3,000-4,000 feet!
The house sleeps 24! It has two master bedrooms on either side of the very top floor, and three bedrooms on the top floor between the masters.
The first floor “which is really the second floor,” has a bunkhouse room that sleeps six. There’s also a family room with two queen sleeper sofas. The glassed in sun porch has a futon and a sleeper sofa.
There are four bathrooms, a large kitchen with an open dinning area and a formal dining room.
The main living room is huge, made even larger by the grand ceiling that rises above the second story that accesses the upstairs bedrooms.
Using local companies and shops, Maggie has done nearly a total remodel to the interior, replacing the dated furnishings and adding a distinct Southwest flair to the entire house.
Needless to say, it is available for nightly rentals.
The Villa made its official public debut at a special Open House held by Red River Real Estate on May 18, 2013. Maggie wanted to introduce the grand house to the locals, many who have never seen the inside.
“My realtor had shown me a couple of things around town, but nothing was grabbing my heart,” Maggie admits. “We really ought to look at this house’ she said and I said ‘Debbie, I can’t afford a house like that!’ But she said, ‘Oh, you’ve just got to see it.’ So, we went to see it, and when we walked through the front door my jaw just dropped. I stood there in awe!
“I said ‘Oh my gosh, this is just a fabulous place. I don’t know if the bank will let me finance a place like that.’ So, I went to the bank (in Texas) and we had our little conversations, and things just fell in place.”
Long-time Red River builder Pat Lamb began construction on the house for his family in late 1970s. It took seven years to complete.
At the time Pat employed a big construction crew with two foremen, and the project was a way to keep them busy when not working on other contract jobs.
“We built a model, 1/2 inch scale,” remembers Pat. “You could take it apart, room by room. We’d talk about what we wanted with one of the foremen and he’d build a room. Then, we’d look at it and decide what we wanted. If we needed changes we’d make those. I had to do a set of plans to permit it for the State, but we actually built it with the model.”
Born in Norman, OK, Maggie Whitt graduated from college in 1973 and taught English for five years in Indiana in a little “tiny “county school.
“I found out I had to have a Masters Degree to keep teaching there and had not had any time to work on it, so I moved to Texas in ‘79.”
She’s lived there ever since, teaching English and Philosophy in Richardson “until about five years ago.
“I’ve retired about three times,” she says with a laugh. She retired the first time, only to return to teaching half-time. Then her Dad got sicker and sicker, so she retired permanently. Still, she works for the Richardson High school parttime whenever the need arises, such as during testing periods.
She has been here every year since buying property ten years ago. With several properties in town, she finds herself “spending more and more and more of the year up here.
“My friends all tease me and say ‘When are you moving there permanently?’ Who knows what the future will bring.
“Restoring this great place is my way of giving something special to the community. The house deserved the treatment and I hope folks enjoy it.”