Founding Work of West Coast Modernism Lists at $5.25 Million in West Vancouver

Written by Lise MacDonald for Business Insider

A house widely regarded as the origin point of West Coast modern architecture has entered the market at $5.25 million. The Binning House at 2968 Mathers Crescent in West Vancouver, built in 1941-42 shortly after the Lions Gate Bridge opened, has undergone a multi-year restoration and is now for sale for the first time in years. Heritage expert Don Luxton told the Vancouver Sun the property carries the genetic code of an entire architectural movement in British Columbia.

The seller is Jesse Saniuk, a realtor who purchased the home partly for its Altamont address, one of West Vancouver's most sought-after neighbourhoods. He told the Vancouver Sun the property ultimately connected three of his interests: art collecting, architecture, and real estate.

Artist Who Shaped an Architectural Era

Bertram Charles Binning was a visual artist who taught at what is now Emily Carr University of Art and Design, and later at UBC. Working alongside architects Ned Pratt and Bob Berwick, he designed the residence as a personal experiment in form. The result was a flat-roofed, two-level structure with an open floor plan and a south-facing wall of near-continuous glass.

Nothing quite like it existed before. The foyer was conceived as a gallery for Binning's own artwork. The house was deliberately integrated into its landscape setting, erasing a clear boundary between interior and exterior. That indoor-outdoor sensibility became a hallmark of the West Coast modern style that followed.

Design Details Preserved Through Restoration

The Vancouver Sun reported the home remains close to its original condition, with updates limited to the kitchen and bathrooms. Saniuk described several unconventional details to the newspaper. The living room ceiling rises gradually from north to south, moving from roughly eight-and-a-half feet to nine feet. No corner in the house meets at a right angle.

A river rock fireplace anchors the main living space. Its presence is deliberate, grounding. The foyer ceiling climbs to approximately 12 feet, amplifying the sense of volume in what is otherwise a compact home. These proportional choices, Saniuk noted, make the interior feel larger than its footprint suggests.

West Vancouver's Heritage Property Market

The listing arrives as West Vancouver continues to attract buyers interested in architecturally significant homes. At Home Hospitality to Open Coastal Restaurant Inside West Vancouver's Oldest Standing Home The Binning House occupies a distinct position in that market: it is a designated heritage property carrying documented national significance to Canadian architectural history, not simply a well-preserved mid-century residence.

Few listings carry that weight. The $5.25 million asking price reflects both the Altamont location and the property's standing as a one-of-a-kind cultural asset. Whether the eventual buyer maintains its heritage character will determine the long-term fate of the structure Luxton called the DNA of West Coast modernism.