Location, privacy and nature combine to make Shady Lane one of Aspen’s most desirable spots.
Shady Lane parallels the Roaring Fork River and the Rio Grande Trail.
Named for one of Aspen’s early ski-era characters, Shady Lane has a colorful history of residents for the quiet, tucked-away, one-street neighborhood it is. Lane, a 10th Mountain Division veteran, was on Aspen Mountain’s first ski patrol team in the 1940s and co-founded the town’s first ski shop. He scavenged lumber and other materials to build and furnish his family’s home, likely the first on his namesake road.
Today, the generous riverfront lots bordering the Rio Grande Trail at the foot of Red Mountain boast some of Aspen’s most desirable addresses: Five of the seven properties are worth over $20 million, and a sixth will likely be once construction is complete.
“Easy access to town, sizeable flat riverfront lots with good sun, and tons of privacy—that’s an amazing combo,” says Aspen Snowmass Sotheby’s broker Andrew Ernemann, who was involved with selling 54 Shady Lane (now 183 Red Mountain Road).
TOTAL BLOCK VALUE IN 2020: $153.68 million
TOTAL BLOCK VALUE IN 2005: $47.73 million
17 Shady Lane
2020 value: $25.5 million
2020 owner:
Callwinnie LLC, Aspen
2005 value: $4.47 million
2005 owner:
Callwinnie LLC, Aspen
Most recent sale:
$6.5 million, August 2004
Of note: Bordering Red Mountain Road, the most visible property on Shady Lane once sheltered a modest ranch-style home among a thick tangle of tall cottonwoods and evergreens. But after wealth manager Michael Stolper bought the 2.3-acre lot in 2004, much of the foliage was cleared to make way for the current 10,440-square-foot residence, which was built using approximately 100,000 pieces of stone handcut and fit like a puzzle on-site—much to the neighbors’ chagrin. Completed in 2009, the project prompted city officials to lower the construction-noise threshold and limit duration of on-site manufacturing activities.
69/71 Shady Lane
2020 value: $33.3 million
2020 owner:
Mustang Holdings II LLC, Aspen
2005 value: $4.48 million
2005 owner: Roine St. Andre and John F. Baldwin Jr., Aspen
Most recent sale:
$13 million, November 2010
Of note: This was once the home of Aspen natives Red and Peggy Rowland, who raised four children there. The son of an Aspen miner, Red oversaw building Aspen Mountain’s original chairlifts—Red’s Run is named after him. Peggy, daughter and granddaughter of early Aspen retailers, cross-country skied the Rio Grande Trail from her home well into old age. Their daughter, Roine St. Andre, was Aspen’s first female ski patroller. After she died, the Rowland children sold the property to Mustang Holdings II, which completed the current 11,130-square-foot riverfront estate in 2017.
99 Shady Lane
2020 value: $14.52 million
2020 owner: Hines Issue
Trust FBO T Hines, Houston
2005 value: $8 million
2005 owner:
Gerald D. Hines, Houston
Of note: The oldest home on Shady Lane, this 8,700-square-foot compound on 2 acres was built by Houston megadeveloper Gerald Hines in 1980, and remains in the family today. Hines’ eponymous company has built office towers and other projects all over the world, including Aspen Highlands’ base village and a tower for his former neighbor’s fallen energy firm, Enron. Hines and his wife, Barbara, have often hosted charity events at the home.
161/165 Shady Lane
2020 value: $24.22 million
2020 owner: Roaring Fork I
LLC, Los Angeles
2005 value: $6.21 million
2005 owner:
Roaring Fork I LLC, Los Angeles
Most recent sale:
$10 million, February 2002
Of note: Bradley Bell, executive producer of soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful, has owned this property since 2002, even filming some episodes in the home he built there. Bell bought the 3.25-acre property from the late Ken Lay, the disgraced founder and head of energy company Enron, who was forced to sell his personal retreat (that Gerald Hines had helped him acquire) along with three other Aspen properties following Enron’s 2001 bankruptcy—and before his fraud conviction and death at another Aspen-area home.
189 Shady Lane
2020 value: $24.72 million
2020 owner: JBA One Properties LLC, Beverly Hills, Calif.
2005 value: $11.5 million
2005 owner: Robert and Linda Gersh Trust, Beverly Hills, Calif.
Most recent sale:
$5 million, April 1998
Of note: There’s another Houston connection to Shady Lane on this 2.5-acre property owned by the Gersh family, whose eponymous talent agency (based in Beverly Hills and New York) is one of the largest in the country. It was previously owned by Jeffrey Hines, son of Gerald Hines (see 99 Shady Lane) and the current president and CEO of the family real estate firm. The 9,230-square-foot log-and-barn-siding residence the Gershes built on the secluded lot was featured in Architectural Digest.
205 Shady Lane
2020 value: $21.75 million
2020 owner: Lanes End Holdings LLC, Florham Park, New Jersey
2005 value: $10.27 million
2005 owner: May 15
Partners LP, Houston
Most recent sale:
$27 million, August 2017
Of note: Big changes are underway for this 2-acre property at the end of Shady Lane, once owned by John Duncan, yet another Houstonite and an Enron board member during its bankruptcy. The Duncans’ 6,600-square-foot home, built in 1993, was recently razed; taking shape now is a nearly 15,800-square-foot estate with eight bedrooms, fitness center and swimming pool. Note that the building permit valuation, $22.5 million, is greater than the most recent value of the property, which includes the previous home
and the land.
54 Shady Lane/183 Red Mountain Road
2020 value: $9.67 million
2020 owner: Shady Red Mountain LLC, Aspen
2005 value: $2.8 million
2005 owner: Marc and Karen Friedberg, Aspen
Most recent sale:
$8.35 million, April 2017
Of note: In 1971, Bauhaus/Wrightian architect Art Yuenger designed the distinctive concrete-block home that until recently was nestled into this forested property on Hunter Creek, his most notable local building besides the Aspen Athletic Club (co-designed with Robin Molny). This past summer, an excavator quickly demolished the three-cubed, blue-trimmed structure, although its predemolition value survives until May. Local firm Aspen Starwood is developing the new four-bedroom, wood-framed canopy house for a private individual; it also gets a new, more accurate address reflecting its Red Mountain Road access.
Photography by: Illustration by Margaret Gribbell McLain
