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The Toronto home where world champion Kurt Browning hangs his skates
| Source: |
The Globe and Mail |
| Date: |
June 26, 2025 |
| Author: |
Carolyn Ireland |
397 Soudan Ave., Toronto
Asking Price: $3,195,000
Taxes: $12,818.00 (2024)
Lot Size: 25 by 150 feet
Agents: Robert Greenberg and Amir Kiabi, Harvey Kalles Real Estate Ltd.
The backstory
When figure skating legend Kurt Browning was looking for a new Toronto
home in 2015, Greenwood College School was at the epicentre of his
search.
His elder son was a student at the private academy.
"I drove around Greenwood in ever-increasing circles until I found
this," Mr. Browning says of the contemporary three-bedroom home on
Soudan Avenue in midtown Toronto.
The house in the popular Davisville neighbourhood, east of Mount
Pleasant Road, was still under construction at the time.
The fact that it's an easy drive to the indoor ice rinks at both the
Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club and the Granite Club was just
a fortunate coincidence.
"My relationship with the Granite Club goes back a long way," says
Mr. Browning. "That was my home club when I was world
champion."
Mr. Browning is a four-time world champion who made history in
Budapest in 1988 as the first skater to land a quadruple jump in
competition.
He later turned professional and has travelled the world for many
years as an artist and choreographer with Stars on Ice. On tour, he
met Alissa Czisny, a two-time U.S. national figure skating champion,
and the two married in 2022.
The couple has spent many late nights at the Cricket Club, holding
practice sessions and choreographing routines for Stars on Ice, says
Ms. Czisny.
The property on Soudan became the haven they returned to from long
stretches on the road.
The house today
The house was nearing completion when Mr. Browning first spotted
it.
The design was contemporary, but the addition of wood cladding on the
exterior appealed to Mr. Browning, who grew up on a farm in
Alberta. He is still drawn to the outdoors.
"It was a little touch of nature," he says, "yet the house has a
modern flair that I felt ready for".
With 2,512 square feet of above-grade living space, the home provided
lots of space for Mr. Browning, his sons Gabriel and Dillon, and the
family dog Rocky.
Mr. Browning also found the open plan well-suited for family
life.
From the front foyer, stairs rise to the main floor, with a dining and
lounging area at the front of the home and a kitchen and family room
at the rear.
The lounging area has a gas fireplace with stone surround and a
built-in window seat overlooking the street.
The layout provides plenty of space where Mr. Browning and Ms. Czisny
can entertain friends and family.
In their younger years, the brothers and Rocky chased each other
endlessly around the space in loops, Mr. Browning likens to a figure
eight.
Today, the dining area holds a large table that can quickly be
converted from a spot for formal meals to a pool table.
"Ninety-nine per cent of the time, it's a pool table," Mr. Browning
deadpans.
The modern design and 10-foot ceilings on the main floor also provide
a good backdrop for art and mementos, including 18 of Mr. Browning's
signature hats.
"Fifty per cent are work hats," he says, pointing out the fedora he
wore for his well-known Singin' in the Rain routine.
There's also a close-up image of the nicks and scratches on his
battle-scarred blades and a collection of photorealistic paintings by
the Canadian artist Will Fisk.
At the rear of the house, floor-to-ceiling windows in the family room
overlook the backyard and a door opens to a deck for lounging and
barbecuing.
At the centre of the house, a staircase with wood treads and a rail of
glass and stainless steel rises to the second floor. Two bedrooms –
one with ensuite bathroom – face the street.
There's also a family bathroom on that level.
Mr. Browning's office at the centre of the upper floor could be turned
into a fourth bedroom.
Today, the room has a wall of floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors
opening to the hallway. When the doors are closed, Mr. Browning notes,
he can block out the sounds of family living while he's writing a
speech or joining a video conference.
Skylights throughout the upper level bring plenty of light to the
interior.
The lower level has a spare room, a bathroom and a large room with
sliding doors opening to the backyard.
That space could be another bedroom, but for many years it has been a
recreation room, where Mr. Browning and his sons played floor hockey
with winter boots standing in for goal posts.
Currently, Mr. Browning and Ms. Czisny use the room as a home
gym. Having a variety of strength-training equipment was essential
during the COVID pandemic, the couple says.
"For the first year, I think I skated one hour," Mr. Browning
says.
They still train extensively today.
Outside, the backyard has a large deck and a built-in hot tub.
Mr. Browning says Soudan Avenue is a friendly street where homeowners
help each other out. After winter storms, he often pitches in with
snow shovelling up and down the block. When he and Ms. Czisny are
travelling, neighbours return the favour.
Dillon followed in his brother's footsteps to attend Greenwood, which
is walking distance from the home.
The couple also have the option to stroll when they head out for
dinner or shopping.
"I walk to Bayview. I walk to Mount Pleasant," Mr. Browning says of
the two main arteries, which each have plenty of restaurants, cafés
and shops.
Now that Gabriel and Dillon have graduated and moved on to new
challenges, Mr. Browning and Ms. Czisny are planning to move to the
Niagara Peninsula.
"This is where the boys became young men," he says of the home. "My
parenting duties have changed."
He and Ms. Czisny are planning to build a country retreat on a
well-treed property. Mr. Browning aims to cut down one of the trees so
that he can use the wood for flooring in the new house.
"That's what my dad did," he says.
As they transition to a new phase, Mr. Browning and Ms. Czisny are
planning a venture centred around coaching and choreography for adult
skating.
Mr. Browning will also be continuing as a television commentator for
the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Gradually, the couple hopes to wind down.
"We're going to start travelling the world to see it, not entertain
it," Mr. Browning says.
The best feature
At the rear of the upper level, the primary suite has a picture window
facing a canopy of mature trees.
There's a large walk-in closet with a skylight above.
The ensuite bathroom has a stand-alone tub, double sink vanity, and a
large walk-in shower.
Mr. Browning added a generator to create a steam shower after becoming
accustomed to warming up cold muscles with hot vapours before practice
during frigid Edmonton winters.
"We're athletes," he says. "I've kept that need for steam. That's my
superpower."
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