Scenic setting a draw at Windermere community
Upper Windermere saw the introduction of Edmonton's first private leisure centre and includes a heated outdoor pool, skating rink, and tennis and basketball courts; they were a way to draw buyers to a farther out segment of Edmonton. One at Windermere introduced a modern and contemporary approach to architecture for a subdivision as a whole. Both are now completed.
Upper Windermere, at 180 acres, and One at Windermere, on 112 acres, were developed in a similar time frame of between 2007 and 2016.
“Windermere has become a very desirable place to be,” said Cantalini. “We saw the vision of what it could be.”
In hindsight, Cantalini said perhaps he should have bought more land there.
However, he notes Cantiro still has more land in the area to develop, including two smaller parcels in the Windermere area south of Ellerslie Road.
DRIVING FORWARD
You could say Dino and Jennifer Cairo put themselves in the driver's seat when it comes to their new home.
The couple is building a custom house on a lot they chose in the Drive at Windermere, the last Windermere community Cantiro currently has on the go. At only 26 lots — 22 are already accounted for — the Drive has a scenic setting and is billed as Edmonton's most exclusive address for estate homes.
That setting is part of the reason the Cairos chose the Drive.
Exploring the area, they love the more mature, nature-based older part of Windermere, where they go on walks with their dog, Cooper, a five-year-old cockapoo; the Drive puts them right next to their dream space. “It feels like you're in the mountains a little bit with the big, tall mature spruce trees,” the couple said.
The other is a Cantiro connection: they're currently in a Dolce Vita home (a former Beaverbrook home building company now known as Cantiro Homes) in Upper Windermere, and Dino is the nephew of the late Tony Cairo who was Cantalini's mentor.
Combine that with the pandemic and the realization that their current home didn't work for them anymore and the decision to build was made.
Their new home — crews just recently
dug the hole for the home — is a bungalow in a French Country style that comes in at just under 2,400 square feet.
“It isn't about building a 7,000 square foot home or making it super elaborate,” said Jennifer, adding it's more about making it right for them with an office for Dino so
he can do Zoom meetings (he uses a makeshift space currently) and to give them a home with a greater emphasis on indoor/outdoor living including a screened-in portion.
“We're hoping to be in there this time next year,” they said. “We're not going crazy large. It's just about enhancing some nice features.”