Featured Homes
Party for 8 to 80
This custom-designed home in the Northland was, literally, built for upscale entertaining.
BY
Brooke Pearl
PHOTOGRAPHY
Matt Kocourek

An extraordinary amount of money has been raised through functions held at Charles and Patty Garney’s English Country home. After taking three years to build more than 10,000 square feet of space, the couple moved into their home during Christmas 1995 and almost immediately started sending out invitations.

Years ago, Charles, Patty and friends loved riding dirt bikes to the previously uninhabited area where their house now sits overlooking Briarcliff Village with unobstructed views of the downtown skyline, and Patty remembers Charles, now chairman of Briarcliff Development Company and Underground Services Co., talking about the day he’d build a house on the hilltop. And he followed through in spectacular fashion.

As guests enter the main level, they’re greeted by an open formal living room draped in lanterns and floor-to-ceiling windows flanked by Juliette balconies. On one side of the formal living room sits the family’s kitchen and informal family room with access to the deck; the other side leads to the master suite, the only bedroom on the main level. A side door in the suite leads to Charles’ English rose garden, where small events such as cocktail hour take place.

Climbing the curved staircase at the entrance or taking a short elevator ride will get visitors or overnighters upstairs, where four elegant yet homey guest suites (with nursery for grandchildren) await them. “Charles always wanted a nice guest retreat with a quiet sitting room,” Patty says. (That’s why all four guest suites come fully equipped with bed-and-breakfast-like amenities.) Besides the four full bathrooms and four half baths the house has to offer, guests will find a small reading nook at the top of the stairs, filled with books and seating for two. It’s a nice getaway from daily stresses and a perfect place to research or read, Patty comments.

The lower level is where the magic happens. “We knew we wanted a lower level for entertaining with a catering kitchen, ballroom, media room and exercise area,” she says, which were good investments since the Garneys host two to three events each month. (The most they’ve welcomed into their home at one time was 800 people following the premier of the movie Kansas City.) Throughout the years, they’ve       estimated that 40,000 people have visited their home — it seems to be ‘the more, the merrier’ for this couple who enjoys giving back to the community. Parts of the lower level that guests might not see are the large storage area behind closed doors and a garage built especially for catering vehicles, located on the backside of the house with direct access to the commercial kitchen.

The open flow of the home’s layout (all part of the original plan) is one of the home’s best features. “You never feel like you get in a room and are caught,” Patty says. With the holiday season approaching, Patty’s schedule is once again full. Every year she hosts a holiday party for her lady friends, an event that started 42 years ago and now includes up to 200 guests. Other occasions include Charles’ business meetings and luncheons; Oktoberfest this past fall; and any other charitable, civic, political, personal and musical event you can think of — Charles’ and Patty’s names can be found on a majority of organizations around town.

It’s a house that was built with good intentions, thanks to its generous homeowners. “We have loved living here, that’s for sure, and we’ve had lots of fun and hope to continue to do the same for many years to come,” Patty says.

 

Generously Involved

Take a look at some of the organizations that Charles and Patty dedicate themselves to each year.

PATTY
Harvest Ball; www.harvestball.org
American Red Cross; www.kcredcross.org
Friends of the Zoo; www.kansascityzoo.org
KU School of Social Welfare; www.socwel.ku.edu
Women’s Foundation Advisory Board; www.wfgkc.org

CHARLES
Civic Council; www.kcciviccouncil.org
Northland Chamber of Commerce; www.northlandchamber.com
KU School of Business; www.business.ku.edu
Park University Board of Trustees; www.park.edu
Clay County EDC; www.clayedc.com