Music

Toronto says Drake's new mansion is too big for city's richest neighbourhood

by Richard Howard

From a shout-out with his last album’s artwork and (initial) title to acting as the Toronto Raptor’s global ambassador, Drake has been recognized as a vocal supporter of his home city.

Still, because people have to bitch about something, the “what’s up with that?” contingent has taken pains to point out Champagne Papi seems to spend most of his time at his palatial California mansion.

Well, they can prepare to eat crow, because Aubrey’s bringing his fine-living ways back home and building a Toronto mansion that’s literally too big for the neighbourhood.

Plans recently filed with the city point to the construction of an improbably massive 21,000 square-foot mansion to be built in Toronto’s exclusive Bridle Path neighborhood.

Just how big is 21,000 square feet? Well, Britney Spears’ $9 million California home that’s recently gone up for sale clocks in at about 8,500 square feet. Mike Tyson’s new Italian-style mansion is about half as big at 10,000 square feet, and even Kanye and Kim’s ridiculous $20 million estate has considerably less at 16,000 square feet of living space. Once the most expensive home in Montreal at nearly $30 million, Celine Dion’s former mansion (which is basically a castle) is only slightly larger at 24,000 square feet.

Of course, considering Drake plans to shoehorn a music and screening room, indoor pool and hot tub, 44-foot by 94-foot basketball court, spa and massage room, jersey museum‎, and much more just into the basement, he’s going to need all that space. (I can’t wait to see what the room dedicated to “important artifacts” consists of.) The rest of the mega-mansion includes five bedrooms, a two-storey great room, a library, and a piano room. The home has been designed by Ferris Rafauli, the same man behind the rapper’s exclusive ACC party space Sher Club.

Here’s the problem – the house is so massive, Drake will need to obtain a number of zoning bylaw exemptions in order to build it as planned. For example, at 17 metres, the building will be 6 metres higher than permitted. Also, the ludicrously wide 34-metre driveway far exceeds the 9-metre limit set by zoning laws.

Considering his status as one of the city’s favourite sons, however, it’s doubtful he’ll run into much of a problem. And just how much will all this cost? There’s no telling just yet, but the property alone (on which a comparatively ‘small’ home still needs to be torn down) was purchased last year for $6.7 million.

Hopefully the ever-classy Drake will send his neighbours-to-be Conrad Black and Gordon Lightfoot some Dom Perrignon to apologize for the construction noise.

[h/t The Globe and Mail]