Advertisement

Meet the billionaire who’s selling this B.C. island for $75M

Sotheby's International Realty
James Island. Sotheby's International Realty

Think the corporate bosses of Internet and wireless companies take home far too much money? This will add to the belief.

James Island, located in the Gulf Island archipelago between Vancouver Island and the U.S. mainland (see map below), is once again on the block, with owner Craig McCaw, a U.S. telecommunications exec, listing the property with Sotheby’s.

The asking price, according to the listing, is $75 million.

That price will get you 780 acres of “literally miles of white sand beaches, grassy dunes [and] a diverse ecology.”

Oh — and a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course.

The island has had “several lives” previous to being a playground for the super-rich, including an agricultural settlement and location of an industrial company town.

Story continues below advertisement

The island now boasts a 5,000 square-foot principal residence, as well as six guest cottages, private docks, an airstrip, pool house and manager’s residence.

McCaw is a Seattle-based billionaire who formed the wireless business that would grow into U.S. giant AT&T Wireless among other successful endeavours in the U.S. mobile business dating back to the early 1990s.

Story continues below advertisement

He now sits on several boards, and mostly spends money. In 2012, he bought the most expensive car on record, a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO for $35 million.

Get expert insights, Q&A on markets, housing, inflation, and personal finance information delivered to you every Saturday.

Get weekly money news

Get expert insights, Q&A on markets, housing, inflation, and personal finance information delivered to you every Saturday.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

McCaw, said to be a deeply private individual, purchased the island in 1994 for $26 million. It appears he tried to sell the property in 2012, but failed to find a buyer.

Craig McCaw, a pioneer of the U.S. wireless business. Getty Images
Advertisement

Sponsored content

AdChoices