Series documenting overhaul of abandoned northern Ontario mansion still lacks broadcaster, gains local support

CBC

2 days ago

There's still no buyer for Mansion Impossible, the unscripted renovation series centred on the colossal Grant Mansion on Lake Temiskaming, but filming is done and editing is underway.
The show follows Texas entrepreneur Chris Fischer and his family as they move to northern Ontario and attempt to restore a 65,000-square-foot unfinished house in Haileybury, said to be the largest in Canada.
After about a year of filming, the series is now in post-production.
Producer Theresa Kowall-Shipp said they're editing a pilot and one additional episode in the hopes of selling the show.
She explained that with shifts in the industry, they're betting on building buzz first.
Kowall-Shipp said so far, it's working. Mansion Impossible has racked up more than 1 million views on YouTube in less than six months.
Before encountering financial difficulties and abandoning the property in 2005, Temiskaming forestry magnate Peter Grant envisioned a corporate retreat.
"It's important to understand that Mr. Grant did not do anything by half measures. He built an extraordinary building and if he had not then we wouldn't be having this discussion right now," Kowall-Shipp said.
Plans for the mansion included a subterranean boathouse, a golf course, and a moat on the exterior, along with interior features such as waterfalls and an art gallery.
The mansion's top floor boasts an expansive office space, yet the entire house was built with only a single bedroom.
"The walls are meters thick in places. They are cement, concrete, they are stone," she said.
The show documents the early stages of the massive cleanup and restoration. Kowall-Shipp described the house as both structurally sound and a complete mess.
"There are probably seven generations of raccoons that have lived in that building. I've met three of the generations," she said. "There are more mice than you can shake a stick at."
The mansion has also seen signs of vandalism, Kowall-Shipp said.
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While 'Mansion Impossible' producers persist in pitching the story of the infamous Grant mansion to online platforms and TV networks, vandals continue to trespass on the property to break windows and put graffiti on the walls.
"I mean, really, is there any reason for us to find 12 office chairs in an elevator shaft?" she said.
Community rallies
Despite the decay, Kowall-Shipp said the response from the Temiskaming Shores community has been overwhelmingly positive.
"We tread carefully. We did not want to brazenly push in," she said. "We certainly have a, let's just say, very robust community on Facebook and they will let us know how they feel. There have been people who said, you know, 'American go home'... I'm not going to pretend that didn't happen. It did. But for every one of those, there were three people inviting the Fischers for dinner."
Kowall-Shipp said locals have gone out of their way to let the production team know they support the project.
"There were people coming out of the woodwork, literally, that had worked on the mansion years ago, who were so proud of the craftsmanship that went into that building," she said.
She said the renovations could take upwards of five years to complete.
As for what's next, Fischer is reportedly considering turning part of the estate into a wellness centre or developing housing on the property. But Kowall-Shipp said that's still up in the air.
"That is the 65,000 square foot question," she said. "He's very aware that this needs to be a a business that will thrive inside this mansion and on the 43 acres that are part of the property."