Malik Hasan remembers the first time he saw the house he’d soon purchase in the ski resort area of Beaver Creek, Colorado, in 1991. The neurologist and former CEO of Foundation Health Systems says he was out for an evening walk with his neurosurgeon partner, who pointed to the property and said that it was on the market.

Hasan was intrigued by the striking stone exterior and its prime location on a golf course, so he called the real estate agent and was shown inside soon after. 

“It was love at first sight,” says Hasan. “As soon as I opened the door and crossed the threshold, I had a sensation that I was in a very unique place.” He liked the high ceilings, which reminded him of palaces and places of worship he’d visited in Europe. He made an offer on the home shortly after and bought it for US$4.32 million ($5.9 million).

Hasan loved the views the property offered and recalls watching the world outside from the sanctuary of the sofa over the years. “In the sitting room, you’re so close to Beaver Creek that you can see people skiing down the slopes,” he says. 

Thirty-four years later, the Rocky Mountain retreat has been listed with Malia Cox Nobrega of LIV Sotheby’s International Realty for US$25 million. For that, a buyer gets the largest single-family home built in the prestigious Beaver Creek and Vail areas, at 20,200 sq ft. The home sits on 1.5 acres in the gated Beaver Creek golf course community and has nine bedrooms, 13 baths, an indoor pool and a sauna.

Hasan says that he’s selling the property because it’s in a trust for his three children, and they’ve all made the decision to reduce its property portfolio, which also includes homes in Las Vegas, Huntington Beach, California and Pueblo, Colorado.

“I’m 87 now, and my wife and I don’t need 20,000 sq ft of space,” says Hasan. “It’s getting difficult for us to really enjoy it.” The two now live full-time in Denver.

The property

The house was designed by modernist architect Charles Sink, known for McNichol Sports Arena in Denver and the clock tower in the village of Vail. The original owner, who commissioned the design in 1985, was Mexican businessman Sergio Bolaños, who didn’t get to enjoy the house for long due to a 1989 arrest on corruption charges by the Mexican government.

“He was afraid of someone shooting at him, so the windows were bulletproof,” says Hasan. After his purchase went through in 1991, Hasan wanted to put his own stamp on the property, calling himself “very aesthetically driven”.

He extended the property by more than 5,000 sq ft, with much of the space used to create a new primary bedroom wing. His suite has marble floors, a raised carpeted platform for the bed and a sitting area with a fireplace and views toward the slopes. 

Hasan also wanted an indoor swimming area, so he had a lap pool installed with green marble and tile. He also used a sauna throughout all four seasons, touting its health benefits. Next to the pool, there are two changing rooms with lockers and a dedicated staircase leads straight from the primary bedroom suite to the spa area.

“My wife also said that she couldn’t cook in this house — there’s a big kitchen that’s very nicely laid out — but she said she needed a commercial kitchen,” says Hasan, explaining that she preferred to cook in privacy and not in an open-plan space. They added a commercial kitchen and often hired chefs to work for them. 

Hasan adds that when he was CEO of a Fortune 500 company, he often entertained at the house—there’s a ballroom space with a gold chandelier and clouds painted on the ceiling that suited hosting. Hasan, a large donor to Republican politicians, says his friends in US politics, like Newt Gingrich and Grover Norquist, often attended his soirees. 

The house itself is laid out over four floors, with the entry level featuring the grand hall, patios and four guest bedrooms. Below that is the pool area as well as the living room, a game room as well as an additional office and bedroom space. The primary suite is on the third level and the basement hosts a wine cellar with a capacity for 2,000 bottles as well as a dedicated tasting area. 

Listing agent Cox Nobrega says the house is on one of the biggest lots in Beaver Creek, and because of its sheer size, she thinks it’ll find a buyer who has a large family or needs to entertain for corporate events like Hasan did. 

Despite not needing that much space anymore, Hasan says he’ll be sorry to see the property go. “I would have loved to have kept the house. It’s just so special. With those high ceilings, I felt like I was living in a cathedral.” — Bloomberg 

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