KENNEBUNK – The spring-fed pond, perhaps an acre in size, is ideal for ice hockey in season, and has a cool fire pit close by. A hard-surface tennis court sits just across the meadow, among these 17.69 acres of lawn and field, pasture and gardens and fruit trees. The expansive, metal-roofed barn has a newer foundation, 10 oversized stalls for horses/livestock, a walkup second story, and a milking station that reveals that there was a dairy farm here until the mid-1980s.
Today, Middle Spring Farm – named for an underground spring approximately in the middle of the fertile acreage – is an estate property, cherished and scrupulously maintained, and one with great potential as an events center, an equestrian facility, or an organic farm with orchard and/or a hops-growing brewery, to name a few possibilities.
It is an historic property, one of four contiguous lots in the Lower Alewive Historic District. The home – of 3,396 square feet – was originally a Cape, which was then expanded beginning in 1820. Author Thomas C. Hubka visited the house and included it in his 1984 landmark book “Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn: The Connected Farm Buildings of New England.”
With four bedrooms and four full baths (one on the first floor), the 10-room, thoroughly updated home is perfect for a family, and for entertaining. The original “little house” has been converted into a 30-foot, cathedral-ceilinged family room, with lots of built-ins (these are everywhere in the house) and exposed ceiling beams. The spacious, dine-in kitchen pleases with granite counters and top-end appliances including double wall oven and a stainless gas cooktop.
The main, “good morning” staircase (there are back, “breakfast stairs,” too) is a wonderful feature. There are four fireplaces: two in the upstairs front bedrooms; and one in the dining room and in the front parlor, each with wood stove. The carpeted master suite has the east wing to itself, and comes with a daylight walk-in closet and a dressing room that introduces the bright, fresh bathroom.
The home at 81 Downing Road, Kennebunk, is offered at $895,000 by Becky Bassett and Grainne Archer of The Bassett Team at Kennebunk Beach Realty. Annual taxes are $8,212. Please contact the team at 967-5481; 251-1995, Becky@TheBassettteam.com; 450-5171, Grainne@TheBassettTeam.com.
The Home of the Week is produced by the Marketing Department of the Maine Sunday Telegram. Photos by David Murray. Send feature home suggestions to jrolfe@pressherald.com.
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