Hangar Heaven

Crème de la crème

The Disney World-style home inside a hangar, near Jacksonville, Florida, is owned by Robert D. Severance and his wife, Meredith. Landscaping, palm trees, and a swimming pool are the only outside indications that this isn't your normal hangar. A two-story luxury home with hardwood floors sits inside, behind the family's Maule MXT-7-180A.

Their two kids love it. Close the hangar door, turn on the disco lights, fire up the fog machine, and you have an instant party while the airplane waits outside. There's no picture window or view outside, but Meredith hangs out in a hammock in the "front yard" or in her reading room in the evenings. At 10 p.m. the family locks the hangar and the house for double security. The family didn't evacuate during the last hurricane, but from inside the house they couldn't even hear the rain pounding on the hangar roof. While not officially for sale, unofficially the family indicates that the house could be purchased for about $1 million. (The family has already turned down an offer of $750,000.)

Severance was inspired by the exhibits he saw at Disney World. There's a barbershop, drum practice room, movie theater, Jacuzzi, office, three bedrooms, a game room, a living room, Meredith's reading room, and Robert's home office. The former detective wants to add a medieval dining hall to the back that can seat 50. His dream project? An actual castle to be built in the mountains of a southern state next to a runway. Then his hangar-home will literally be his castle. (Visit the Web site www.floridahangarhome.com.)

Into the woods

When a large country estate was parceled off near Hackensack, Minnesota, (population 230) theater rigging designer John Justad bought the part that used to be the private Webb Lake Airport with a paved 2,000-foot-long runway. The only building was a 60-by-80-foot hangar with a steel-framed upper mezzanine used to store antique cars. Justad didn't have any antique cars, but built a five-bedroom home with three bathrooms and two kitchens in the space and uses the first floor for his Cessna 182, his car, and a de Havilland Beaver he just purchased. The home portion not only has windows to the outside, but a patio door leading to a small deck built outside one of the living rooms. A larger deck will be built outside the second living room in 2006. Much of the interior lighting benefits from his design work for high school and college theaters. His three teenagers love the place, especially since they can use their skateboards and bicycles indoors on rainy days. There is even a tire swing in the hangar. The airport has pilot-controlled lighting, but he keeps the airport private because of prevailing crosswinds. The downstairs space also has a woodworking shop, a flight office, and a welding shop. He enters the home via stairs, but could, if he wanted, still use the freight elevator that once lifted the antique cars. He keeps the elevator in working condition so that he can lift appliances and other heavy objects to the home. The home has its own ceilings. He added special roofing to quiet the roar of rainfall. If there is a downside, it would be the 10-acre lawn he now must mow, but he has a tractor for that. The other 20 acres are taken by wetlands and woods.

Nascar museum

Nascar driver Mark Martin — he's the Viagra-sponsored driver with $5.5 million in winnings who at this writing had a shot at the Nascar national championship — has a personal hangar chocked full to the ceiling of aerobatic and general aviation aircraft, or so we hear. That was private, though, and remains so, but the corporate hangar for his jet was interesting enough. That's what we were allowed to see.

Martin has turned the hangar near Daytona Beach, Florida, into a museum of his racing career that also includes a fully equipped gym for building the strength needed for high-G driving. "Fully equipped" means he easily has more exercise machines than most commercial gyms now operating in shopping centers.

There are several of his winning cars, many of his son's smaller winning race cars, nearly all of his uniforms showing the change in his sponsorship over the years, and all of his trophies, which fill a 30-foot-high wall, floor to ceiling. Oversized checks created for photo opportunities in the winner's circle, one for $250,000 and one for $1 million, also decorate the walls. Comfortable lounge furniture to entertain a huge party and remote-control lighting make the hangar a perfect spot for entertaining guests. Models of the aircraft he has owned sit on a shelf at one end of the room.

Oh, yes, the airplane. There's still room for a Cessna Citation CJ2 in one-half of the hangar that he personally flies to races. A full-size cardboard picture of Martin watches over the jet while he is gone. We wanted to show that, but alas, the cutout was wearing the wrong sponsor driver's uniform.

Up front, before walking into the cavernous hangar, are luxurious business offices to please a corporate chief executive officer, which is what race drivers have to be these days to succeed. The back hangar, which serves as a museum of Martin's career, is visited by invitation only. As nice as it is, there were plans to move to a new facility soon.

Rockin' on floats

Bill and Connie Montgomery have a recreational seaplane-hangar home called Stillwater Landing on Lower Stillwater Lake near Whitefish, Montana, which also serves as an outdoor entertainment pavilion. Every other year they throw a nonprofit, noncommercial fly-in complete with performing bands on a stage in the hangar.

This is a cool part of the country in more ways than one, so the hangar is heated. It includes all necessary accommodations, even fast Internet service, for winter ice-fishing visitors.

There are camping and RV sites for friends in the summer, and campers have a separate shower in the hangar. See details on the Web site ( www.stillwaterlanding.com).

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See more hangar homes on AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/members/hangarhomes/). And if your hangar home is your castle, we want to hear from you. Send your photos and information to [email protected] with "hangar homes" in the subject line.