Former Best Buy exec's modernist home on Lake Minnetonka hits market for $1.975M

Wade Fenn's distinctive house on Lake Minnetonka has seen a lot of parties in its day.

That's by design, according to Fenn, the former Best Buy executive who has owned the home for more than 20 years.

"It's a house meant to entertain," said Fenn, who added every amenity for hosting memorable soirees, including a pool and private guest suite. "We entertain a lot," he said, up to 200 guests at some events. "The kids call it Camp Fenn."

Designed by award-winning architect Arthur Dickey for a physician in 1981, the house wasn't originally so party-friendly. But it was striking, with its soaring windows and front entrance and "spiky" garage — tall stalls with separated rooflines. And with 126 feet of shoreline on Smithtown Bay in Victoria, the setting was spectacular.

That's what sold Fenn on the property. "I fell in love with the view first of all," he said. "It had absolutely stunning views of the lake." The home's contemporary style was another plus. "I didn't want a traditional home. I wanted an eclectic unique home."

Fenn bought the place in 1993 and hired Dickey's firm to design a 2,000-square-foot addition that dramatically expanded the kitchen and created space for a media room and master suite.

Several years later, he expanded the home again, this time working with another award-winning architect, Randall Buffie, and Streeter & Associates.

"I had a lot of international guests coming to town," Fenn said, and his job at the time, executive vice president for Best Buy, required frequent hosting. So he added a two-story guest suite connected to the main house by a 45-foot catwalk, as well as the pool, hot tub, a "babbling brook" and an additional two-car garage.

Fenn left Best Buy in 2002 after 22 years. His current job, entrepreneur and founder of Navvo, creator of Voco voice-control technology, doesn't require as much hosting, and three of his four children are grown; the 8,600-square-foot home now feels too big.

"I'll miss most of the great times we spent entertaining and going on moonlit cruises," he said. "That phase is over."

Other features:

• New kitchen (remodeled last year) featuring European-style cabinets and quartz countertops.

• Five bedrooms, including two master suites (one in the guest suite) and five baths.

• Lower-level media room with backlit "scotch bar" for tastings.

Paul Johnson of Lakes Sotheby's has the listing, 952-212-7103