property watch: joe and rosalie segal’s elegant south granville townhouse on the market
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when lorne segal was developing the 12-storey kingswood residential tower in the heart of south granville 25 years ago, he never imagined his parents, billionaire businessman and philanthropist joe and his wife rosalie, would ultimately call one of the best of the building’s 18 units, the west estate, home. having sold their five-bedroom, 12-bathroom, 22,000-square-foot point grey house for $42 million in 2021, the couple wanted luxury on a smaller scale, but not condo-small.
“my parents were certain they would never live in a typical highrise,” says segal, president of kingswood properties ltd. “what they valued most about the kingswood was that it was conceived not as a conventional condominium, but as a limited-edition residential work — closer in spirit to a private estate than to typical multi-family housing. it preserved the essence of their former home: privacy, dignity and beauty, but in a more manageable form.”
derek grech, founder of west vancouver realtors the partners and listing agent for the unit, says, “as they were aging, (the segals) were looking for something that was lock-up-and-go and had an elevator. they bought it for around $5 million in 2013 and spent almost the same amount renovating the entire 4,100 square feet, from the sinks to the chandeliers. the building itself is such a beautiful structure — every trade that was involved in building the kingswood has used it as a portfolio highlight on how to properly build a building in the city.”
kitchen features a range of high-end fittings, such as granite countertops and appliances by wolf.
supplied / the partners real estate
while studying law at oxford, segal says he was influenced by england’s traditional architecture and later by then prince charles’ book a vision of britain, which, he says, “articulated principles i found myself instinctively agreeing with — human scale, proportion, craftsmanship, and a belief that buildings should age gracefully and enrich daily life.”
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years after completing the kingswood, he met prince charles in vancouver, who was flattered that segal had read his book and that it had influenced the building. segal, in turn, sent the prince his own book about the building, called the kingswood, which prompted an invitation to dine with the prince at buckingham palace, where they talked “about architecture and the responsibility of the built environment,” says segal. “while the kingswood was never ‘endorsed’ (by king charles) in a formal sense, it was profoundly meaningful to see the ideas that shaped it recognized in such a personal way.”
in the dining room a hand-painted ceiling and wall treatment in metallic background depicts fruit trees and floral vines.
supplied / the partners real estate
what’s inside
occupying one of only two main-floor units, joe and rosalie, who lived in the kingswood for a relatively short period before joe died in 2022 and rosalie a year later, had the option of entering the home through intricately carved gates and past a 24-hour concierge in the lobby, or through their private, three-car lower-level garage.
the elegant main living area is awash in natural light thanks to tinted curved windows that stretch up to the 18- foot high ceiling — the largest curved glass job in north america at the time. a black italian marble fireplace mantel, designed by local stone specialists marble art, warms the bright, expansive room. the antique european chandelier was purchased in 2015 for us$135,000. in fact, all the unit’s light fixtures are custom-made from italy.
in the dining room, a hand-painted ceiling and wall treatment in metallic background depicts fruit trees and floral vines, designed by decorative art specialists at gorman studios in vancouver to resemble silk crépon. double doors open from the dining room onto a 5,500-square-foot outdoor patio and green space filled with flowering trees and shrubbery, ideal for outdoor entertaining and gardening.
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“the garden was central to their daily life,” says segal. “from the moment one entered the residence, the view opened to a private, expansive garden roughly the size of a city lot. wherever they sat — living room, dining area, or kitchen — they were visually connected to greenery. it became the emotional centre of the home.”
the kingswood is a 12-storey residential tower in vancouver’s south granville neighbourhood.
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the home boasts a 5,500-square-foot outdoor patio and green space filled with flowering trees and shrubbery.
supplied / the partners real estate
a library/sitting room that could also double as an office or den features custom-designed, built-in cabinetry by north vancouver’s ernest collins architect, which pays homage to legendary furniture designer chippendale. the georgian-style oval medallions in the panels are made from rare woods, including ebony.
the kitchen features granite countertops and appliances by wolf, including the microwave oven and a six-burner stove with griddle. the 48-inch wide side-by-side refrigerator-freezer and wine cooler were made by sub-zero, as was a 150-200 bottle wine cooler in the basement. the high-end steel dishwasher is by swedish company asko appliances. cabinetry comes courtesy of v6b design group in vancouver, and the herringbone floor pattern is made of solid oak parquet.
a separate restaurant-style chef’s prep kitchen with commercial walk-in fridge and freezer in the basement “allowed for catered events to occur discreetly without intruding on the main living spaces,” says segal. however, he says, by the time his parents moved in, entertaining was no longer to the extent it was when they hosted larger functions for fundraising and other social events from their earlier years.
the renovations, which spanned two years, also reconfigured the original four-bedroom layout into three bedrooms to create a larger primary suite. “finishes were refined, details sharpened, and materials upgraded, but always in keeping with the original architectural language of the building,” says segal.
the primary bedroom features two separate dressing rooms and en suites with 24-karat gold-plated fixtures.
supplied / the partners real estate
private elevator doors feature elaborate artistry.
supplied / the partners real estate
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the primary bedroom features two separate dressing rooms and en suites with 24-karat gold-plated fixtures by phylrich in california, as well as a custom-etched sink design with double glass and gold leaf underlay. a wall covering with a metallic silver background and hand-painted trees with flowers was designed by gorman studios. shower walls are made of marble and glass tiles with gold leaf backing. mirror artwork on the suite’s two bathrooms features the ancient decorative art of reverse glass painting called eglomise, designed by gorman studios.
carpeting throughout the home is designed and custom-made of 50/50 wool and silk, with the exception of the primary bedroom’s wall-to-wall, which is 25/75 wool and silk.
the bronze-accented staircase leads to an upper balcony with gold-plated baluster and railings custom-designed by ernest collins architect. the private elevator, whose doors feature chinoiserie, the european imitation of chinese artistry, a combination of traditional and contemporary chinese and japanese design lacquer work, also by gorman studios, connects the two floors as well as the garage.
during renovations, grech says, the segals added “several tesla generating panels in the garage, so if the block lost power their unit would still be self-sufficient.”
segal says that when he first conceived the kingswood, even though he never thought his parents would someday call it home, he did have people like them in mind. “people who cared deeply about privacy, proportion, craftsmanship and permanence, and who were unwilling to compromise on those values. over the years, many others chose the kingswood for precisely those reasons. but when my parents ultimately chose it as their final home — decades after the idea first took shape — it carried a meaning that was entirely personal. it wasn’t about validation; it was about seeing the kingswood through the eyes of the most discerning people i knew. in that moment, it felt like a long and demanding journey had come full circle.”
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in the neighbourhood
“it’s a quiet south granville neighbourhood with a bit of liveliness to it,” says grech, with coffee shops, banks and grocery stores in nearby granville street and kitsilano. “across the street is the vancouver lawn tennis & badminton club. some people like the fact that vancouver general hospital is close, and the airport is close.”
and while there are many schools nearby, grech says, “i don’t think it (would appeal to) a family with young children, they would want a (bigger) home, unless it was a family from new york or l.a. used to living in condos. the people we’ve shown it to have been 60-year-old couples downsizing from their bigger houses. people who want to sell their house in shaughnessy but still feel like they’re living in shaughnessy but with an easier lock-up-and-go approach.”
location:
listed for: $9,800,000
year built: 2001
type: three bedrooms, six bathrooms
size: 4,181 sq ft townhouse
realtor: listed by derek grech and yuliya lys, the partners real estate
correction: this story was updated on feb. 12, 2026, with the detail that joe and rosalie segal purchased their kingswood residence in 2013 — not in 2021.
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