hen you pull in the driveway of the Nestleton Waters Inn, your breath stops for a brief moment as you take in the expansive view of a gorgeous mansion. You feel you should be stepping out of a sports car, as the wow factor is truly amazing.
What will also make your jaw drop is the story of how it all started.
The Kiezebrink family Erika and Harry lived on this amazing 93-acre parcel of land for many years, in their farmhouse. Their son Erik and wife Deborah had moved in with their family and had on many an occasion talked about building an amazing house that they could all come together to run as a bed and breakfast. One evening Erik decided to sketch something and the drawing took on a life of its own and was unlike anything he had done previously in his building career.
He drew a magnificent house that came out of his head. Both his wife Deborah and his mother Erika said, “You have to build this!”
Well as they say an idea was born and the rest is history. The 7200 sq ft estate was architecturally designed by Erik and built primarily by both he and his Dad with the help of family and friends and some craftsmen when needed. What was intended to be one year of construction, turned into three and a half years, with each phase of construction revealing unexpected surprises.
Initially the Kiezebrink juniors lived in the basement under a tarp, while the Kiezebrink Seniors lived in the remaining freestanding bedroom after nearly a full demolition of the old farmhouse that once stood there. A wood stove kept the pipes from freezing, but temperatures were below 30º and the family kept warm with space heaters and by winter camping wearing layers of clothing, coats, sleeping bags, and sometimes even shoes to bed, for two and a half winters. During rains, every available pot, pan, pail and dish, collected water from the drips, as the roof and shingles weren’t finished until the third winter.
10
Inns E-Magazine / Spring 2014
The of Building an Inn from Scratch
W
Love
By Mary Hughes