Cherry Creek Estate, mainstreamed

“Family farm” means something pretty special to the Hockley and McInnes families

by Marie Milner — November 07, 2013

Three men stand in the foreground, with a circular pool and two-storey mansion behind them

1 of 7(L to R) Dennis Hockley, Jody McInnes and Joe Hockley are the happy new owners of Cherry Creek Estate near Cranbrook, B.C. — Photo courtesy Cherry Creek Holdings

Large room with modern furniture, shining floors and large windows

2 of 7Polished Italian granite floors shine in the receiving room at Cherry Creek Estate. — Marie Milner photo

Large room features an enormous bed and a sitting area near floor-to-ceiling windows

3 of 7An enormous bed faces a fireplace in one of the guest rooms at Cherry Creek Estate. — Marie Milner photo

4 of 7The master suite bathroom at Cherry Creek Estate provides a spa-like atmosphere. — Marie Milner photo

Spa area features a swimming pool, exercise room and free-standing shower enclosure

5 of 7Cherry Creek Estate has an indoor swimming pool with a sauna/steam room and exercise gym. — Marie Milner photo

Billiard table in a room with leather chairs lining one wall

6 of 7There is a designated billiard room at Cherry Creek Estate, with comfortable seating for anyone who wishes to observe the game. — Marie Milner photo

Young woman in a long white dress, in an autumn woodland

7 of 7Cherry Creek Estate provides a beautiful setting for weddings and other special events. — Isaac Hockley photo

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When Jody McInnes, Joe Hockley, Dennis Hockley and their wives took a drive from Cranbrook, B.C., into the middle of nowhere to look at a ranch that was advertised for sale, they had no idea that they’d find an exquisitely finished 12,000-square-foot mansion and European-crafted outbuildings set in acres of parkland.

“We didn’t even know this place existed until Joe saw it listed for sale,” McInnes said. “We had talked about someday building a guest ranch or finding one that we could buy, so we decided to have a look just for fun.”

The sellers

Cherry Creek Estate, located at the end of a country road about 20 minutes north of Cranbrook and 20 minutes southeast of Kimberley, is a 320-acre working farm formerly owned and lived on by Hans and Patricia Plechinger.

The Plechingers originally listed their estate for sale at $7.5 million, but at the point when McInnes and the Hockleys arrived on the scene, the estate was for sale by auction.

The buyers

McInnes is a brother-in-law of Joe Hockley and son-in-law of Dennis. His company, Stillwater Consulting Ltd., designs custom training programs for resource-management and land-use companies. HM Productions, in which McInnes partners with Isaac Hockley—also his brother-in-law—is a successful event-promotion company.

Dennis is a builder and property developer whose companies are well known in Cranbrook: Living-Stones Developments, Aldies Land Company and Bravo Restoration Services.

“As soon as we saw the property, we knew it was perfect. Our dream was built and set aside just waiting for us,” said McInnes. “It took some doing, but we put everything we could into it and ours was the highest bid. Then we worked out a separate deal for all of the equipment, furnishings and machinery needed to operate the property.”

“In the end it was a walk of faith, and trust in the Lord Jesus,” said Dennis.

The estate

The three-level house has Italian granite floors with in-floor heating, and the beautifully proportioned rooms have custom finishings. The house is filled with light and warmth, and some of the five bedrooms have dressing room-style walk-in closets and spa-like bathrooms.

The house has a chef-worthy kitchen, an indoor saltwater swimming pool, a sauna/steam room, a fully equipped gym, a billiards room and a broad, wrap-around sundeck that overlooks Cherry Creek, the farmland and the ring of mountains beyond.

A short walk from the house, across lush, beautifully kept lawns, are a number of outbuildings: a timber-frame buggy barn and a horse barn built by European craftsmen, a wood mill and a 7,000-square-foot hay barn that was spruced up and used as a wedding reception venue for Isaac Hockley and his bride on October 26.

The plan

A resident caretaker oversees the stock and farming practices. The farming operations will continue and the horse barn is available for boarding.

“The big change is that we’ll open for special events, training programs and corporate retreats,” said McInnes.

The buggy barn interior will be reconfigured to increase overnight accommodations to the maximum allowed in the Agricultural Land Reserve, and to include a seminar room. The hay barn will be converted into a reception hall for special events.

“It’s going to be very elegant, modelled after some converted barns that we’ve researched back east,” McInnes said. “We’ll have that done in time for the wedding season in the spring. We’re going to offer a shuttle service for special events, running to Cranbrook and to Kimberley.”

There’s certainly space available for a vegetable garden, which would add to the charm of the setting and provide just-picked freshness to the meals served to guests.

“As a family we’re all pretty excited,” said McInnes. “It’s important to us to make this place accessible to multiple markets and diversify the experiences that we can provide. It’s a very peaceful and beautiful environment, and we plan on having accommodation available at a range of prices so that people can experience Cherry Creek regardless of their budget.”

The launch

The estate hosted a media gathering in mid-October, and bookings are coming in at a surprising rate. McInnes said he has received booking calls from as far away as China, from people who have heard about the property and have tracked down his cell number.

“The response has been incredible,” said McInnes. “We haven’t yet implemented our marketing plan and already we’ve booked numerous Christmas parties, seven weddings and a number of private retreats and conferences.

“I believe that Cherry Creek Estate will soon be on the list of attractions that bring people to the area.”