5964 Emscote Dr., Halifax
Asking Price: $14,900,000
Taxes: $117,952 (2025)
Lot Size: One acre
Agent: Piers Baker, Duckworth Real Estate
The backstory
For a few years, Halifax business magnate John Risley and skin care maven Amy Gordinier made a historic village on Nova Scotia’s south shore the centre of family life. Around 2015 they felt the pull of the city, where their two younger children would be closer to school.
The couple purchased a 1980s-era house in a striking setting on the narrow coastal inlet known as the Northwest Arm.
Mr. Risley, the co-founder of Clearwater Seafoods, was born in Nova Scotia. U.S.-born Ms. Gordinier moved to Canada 22 years ago. They both favoured melding the comfort of a newly built house with the appearance of a heritage home standing at the water’s edge for generations.
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The couple brought in interior designer Philip Mitchell to create a grand three-storey residence with 10,464 square feet of living space.
Mr. Mitchell, with offices in Toronto and Lunenburg, N.S., has been immersed in maritime building traditions since he purchased his own Victorian cottage in the province many years ago.
For the Risley family, Mr. Mitchell designed a house with four bedrooms, five bathrooms and two half-baths. The three-year project was finished in 2019.
As The Globe and Mail recently reported, Mr. Risley’s holding company, CFFI Ventures Inc., is seeking protection from creditors under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act.
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The Halifax home with 119 feet of ocean frontage was listed for sale in early March with an asking price of $14.9-million.
In an e-mail regarding the listing, Mr. Risley points to the cost of construction.
“The secret to selling a house in Halifax for $13-million or $14-million is to spend over $20-million building it,” he says.
The house today
The couple had worked with Mr. Mitchell in the past, says Ms. Gordinier, so they felt comfortable giving him plenty of latitude with the design of the new house.
The principal rooms include a living room and a lantern-topped breakfast room positioned to take advantage of morning light from the east and views of the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron across the inlet.
The family room provides a place to gather for sunset views in the west.
“We really do use every room,” says Ms. Gordinier.
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The home’s 11 fireplaces – including one in the primary suite bathroom and another in the gym – reflect her husband’s love of wood-burning fires, says Ms. Gordinier.
For his part, Mr. Mitchell wanted to make the most of the light and views on the steeply sloping lot.
The exterior clad in shingle and stone is in keeping with the vernacular of Maritime architecture, Mr. Mitchell says.
Some of the more refined elements, such as bay windows, painted shingles, copper detailing and decorative brickwork are typical of the home of a prosperous city dweller in the late 19th century.
Throughout the home, colour and texture contribute to a relaxed way of life, says Mr. Mitchell.
“Even though the house is definitely on a grand scale, they wanted it to feel comfortable – not too formal or stately.”
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Many of the home’s floors, for example, are covered in planks from four heritage barns in the state of Montana. The reclaimed wood was hand-planed on site, Mr. Mitchell explains.
“It adds a rustic casualness to most of the rooms,” he says. “It immediately takes everything down a notch.”
Fixtures and finishes in polished brass will age with time, he says.
“They were chosen to be as authentic and period as possible.”
Ms. Gordinier’s favourite shades of blue turn up in the decor in many rooms.
In one powder room, for example, flowers hand-stitched in silk embellish the wall coverings.
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For the kitchen, Ms. Gordinier chose an AGA range in robin’s egg blue. Mr. Mitchell had the substantial island painted the same hue and placed a brass pot hanger above.
“People congregate in the kitchen like in all Nova Scotia houses,” he says. “The kitchen could have been much more formal if it was all white. This is much more playful.”
At the centre of the home, a circular staircase rises to the second level. Mr. Mitchell designed the area as a transitional space where residents can pause to take in the couple’s large collection of paintings by renowned Nova Scotia folk artist Maud Lewis.
An iron and antique glass lens disguises a modern skylight.
Upstairs, the primary suite has a bedroom with a vaulted ceiling and separate sitting area, an ensuite bathroom with a claw foot tub, a walk-in shower and dressing rooms.
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Some modern luxuries throughout the house can be found in the elevator access to all floors, radiant heat towel warmers, wet and dry saunas and a dog washing room.
To keep the home running efficiently, the building’s systems include geothermal heating, security systems and glycol in-floor heating.
“The utility rooms look like a ship in this house,” says Mr. Mitchell.
The south end of Halifax offers plenty of opportunity to spend time in nature, says Ms. Gordinier, who frequently heads out the door for a run through nearby Point Pleasant Park. The historic park offers woodland trails, cycling paths and ocean views.
“It’s a special place.”
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The best feature
The lot descends to the water’s edge with multiple terraces, an expansive lawn and a fenced-in dog run for the family’s two standard poodles.
The exterior provides spots for barbecuing, dining and keeping an eye on the action on the Northwest Arm, which is home base for rowing, paddling and sailing clubs.
“We pretty much live on the upper deck,” Ms. Gordinier says. “The kids call it my office. You almost feel like you’re on a boat.”
Editor’s note: Due to an error introduced in editing, in a previous version of this article, the first photo caption stated that the house was built in the 1980s. The current house, which was completed in 2019, replaced a 1980s house. This article was also updated to correct the name of the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron.