Allen Tears Down Mansion To Build New One -- Mccurdy House Didn't Meet Code, Says Software Tycoon

MERCER ISLAND - About the time his neighbors were expecting software billionaire Paul Allen to move back into his home on his seven-acre estate, the house has disappeared - torn to the ground, leaving only the library standing.

Ironically, it was that lakeside mansion whose architectural style provided the basis for the design of a complex Allen is building in the 6400 block of West Mercer Way. The complex includes his mother's home and library, a basketball gymnasium and tennis building, an entertainment center and a north wing that almost doubles the floor area of the original home.

The mansion was built in 1941 in traditional brick-and-clapboard style for the late Horace McCurdy, a shipbuilder, heavy-construction magnate and Northwest maritime historian. Plans were to remodel the 8,000-square-foot home and expand it by 5,700 square feet, maintaining its architectural integrity in the process. But when remodeling began, problems were discovered that persuaded Allen's project leaders to get rid of the centerpiece building and start from scratch.

The 40-year-old Allen, co-founder of Microsoft and owner of the Portland Trail Blazers, Asymetrix and a variety of companies he purchased or founded, bought the McCurdy home and about three acres in 1983 for a reported $1 million. In 1990 he started acquiring adjacent properties and began building an estate on a scale that astonished even Mercer Island.

Allen's project manager and sister, Jody Allen Patton, says the original house was demolished about three weeks ago.

"We were going to remodel several rooms and upgrade the heating system," she said, "but were advised the house didn't meet current building codes, especially with respect to earthquake protection. And there was lots of dry rot."

City building inspector Scott Wakeford says it "was a structural engineer's call that it would be easier to rebuild than to try to earthquake-proof the old house."

Patton says the new home will follow the footprint of the old and look much the same.

"The rest of the estate was keyed to (the original house)," she said, "and we want to keep the flavor: sort of a modified Cape Cod, of brick and siding, with shingled roof."

The rest of the estate is close to completion, with only the entertainment complex still under construction - and that's expected to be done by February. Patton says rebuilding the original mansion will require an additional 12 to 14 months. Meanwhile, Allen is waiting out the construction from another waterfront home in Bellevue's Newport Shores.