CHARLES SPENCER, THE BRITISH NOBLE WHO IS THE YOUNGER BROTHER OF THE LATE PRINCESS DIANA, HAS BOUGHT A LARGE UNTOUCHED FOREST IN ONTARIO'S MUSKOKA COTTAGE COUNTRY, PROMPTING LOCAL CONCERNS ABOUT WHAT HE MIGHT BUILD THERE.
PURCHASE OF UNTOUCHED PROPERTY IN MUSKOKA BY CHARLES SPENCER, DIANA'S BROTHER, RAISES EYEBROWS
Charles Spencer, the British noble who is the younger brother of the late Princess Diana and uncle to Princes Harr y and William, has bought a large untouched forest in Ontario’s Muskoka cottage country north of Toronto, prompting local concerns about what he might build there.
The purchase by the Earl Spencer, as he is formally styled, has caused worry among residents of the Port Carling area because Muskoka is famous for luxur y properties and rich owners, some of whom upset the tranquil wilderness setting with helicopters, float planes, and the construction of Canada’s most lavish recreational homes. Among the NHL hockey players and captains of industry in Muskoka, celebrities spotted on its lakes or around the small towns include Cindy Crawford, Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.
Silver Lake is a rare exception to this real estate trend. It is a small lake with a few modest cottages, just east of the local small centre of Port Carling, and fully enclosed by private property with no public access. Now, it has the unique gloss of royalty.
As the new unofficial Earl of Port Carling, Charles Spencer now owns much of Silver Lake’s southern waterfront and a large untouched forest behind, with permission to build. He is listed as the sole owner, but he purchased it with his Canadian wife Karen, the Countess Spencer.
Ontario property records indicate the deal closed last Friday for the property that has more than 1,000 feet of Silver Lake shoreline, and 20 acres of land, thick with brush, with areas of steep rocky terrain and a hemlock swamp. It is accessed by a private road, but is unfenced and otherwise wild.
It is a “hidden gem” of pristine Ontario lakefront woodland that has long been coveted by developers, but has been owned by the same family since the land grants of the 1800s, according to the selling agent Tracy Stewart.
A recent environmental assessment identified one particular spot for land development and construction of a waterfront house on the Spencers’ new property. This is what causes the local worry.
“We all have enjoyed this lake (Silver Lake) forever because it’s so darned quiet and obviously we want it left that way,” said one local resident who asked to remain anonymous.
The resident said there is hope that the Spencers will keep the Silver Lake shoreline in its undisturbed state, however, for two main reasons. One is that Charles Spencer, who is an author and journalist, is well known as a lover of nature. He has previously spoken of his love for Canada, and Muskoka especially, as a holiday spot he has enjoyed for many summers.
In the early summer of 2018, for example, he tweeted, “Today I am lucky enough to be returning to Ontario — whose beauty I learnt about via my beautiful Canadian wife.”
The other reason to expect the Spencers might leave Silver Lake’s forest undisturbed is that they are also purchasing a cottage at the east end of the property, not directly connected, but very close, across a road, on the waterfront of Arthurlie Bay on the much larger Lake Rosseau, one of the more famous of the trio of Muskoka lakes — Lake Muskoka, Lake Rosseau, Lake Joseph.
That cottage was listed at $8 million. The land sold for approximately $1.3 million.
The Rosseau cottage faces east, so sunrises are glorious, but afternoons can be dark. The most valuable Muskoka properties tend to face the south and west for this reason. The nearby Silver Lake forest, however, has some western exposure at the spot designated for a potential future residential building.
The local council met in February to hear a variance application for this property, which was approved in May and finalized in November, just before the deal closed. It requires that the new owners agree to the terms of a site evaluation report and water quality impact assessment prepared last year.
It does allow for construction of a waterfront house on Silver Lake, although given that the Spencers also bought the nearby cottage, the resident said there is hope that they intend to leave it as a pristine forest, to be used as it is now, mostly by deer, fox, and other wildlife.
Leslie Carr, who sold the property along with her brothers, said they have no comment on the sale.
A realtor involved in the sale of the Lake Rosseau cottage said it was “un- Canadian” to report on the Spencers’ purchase of the properties.
“People come here because they don’t get bothered by this bulls—,” said Todd Adair of Cayman Marshall International Realty Inc. “They’ve been in Muskoka for eight years. This is not their first property.”
Charles and Karen were married in 2011 at Althorp, the stately home of the Spencer family in Northamptonshire, England, where Princess Diana is buried on an island in a lake.
Karen Spencer was born in Edmonton, and her father worked in Canadian national parks, which saw her family move many times when she was a child. She is a philanthropist who in 2004 founded Whole Child International, a charity for child welfare.
Charles and Karen have one eight- year- old daughter together, Lady Charlotte Diana Spencer, and both have older children from previous marriages.
The deal for the land closed last Friday. It was in the works for months, and done in secrecy. Even the mayor of Muskoka Lakes, who is also a realtor, said he had not yet heard who the buyers are.
“We welcome royalty,” said Phil Harding. “I’m on a needto-know basis and clearly I don’t need to know.”
WE ALL HAVE ENJOYED THIS LAKE FOREVER BECAUSE IT'S SO DARNED QUIET AND OBVIOUSLY WE WANT IT LEFT THAT WAY.