| Special to the Times
A nearly century-old Rim Road masterpiece is on the El Paso market for $2.2 million.
The Mediterranean baronial estate exudes artistry with hand-painted ceilings, imported tile and custom-made fixtures.
The magnificent mansion’s sellers are sisters; Rachel and Racy Haddad’s parents bought the gem in 1972, following the ownership of other prominent El Paso families.
“The house has a personality,” Rachel Haddad said. “You walk into the house, and it speaks to you.”
The pair were young children — ages two and 12 — when they first stepped into 815 Rim Road.
Both recall their late parents, Norman and Dorathy Haddad, welcoming the community inside their home for dinner parties and other civic events.
“I have a lifetime memory reel in my mind,” Racy Haddad said. “It was my dad’s forever home.”
For decades, the family maintained the historic charm of the approximately 7,500-square-foot residence, but preserving its integrity has been a labor of love.
“My dad taught us your home is your refuge,” Rachel Haddad said. “It has been an emotional transition for us.”
While the tiled roof and bright, detailed exterior leave onlookers in awe, the inside is just as captivating, with ceilings soaring to the heavens, delicately painted murals and glistening hardwood floors.
“It’s been an iconic home in El Paso,” Rachel Haddad said. “People come to the door and take pictures of their own.”
The sisters hope the home will serve its next family well and create memories to last a lifetime.
“We hope they have the same intentions that my parents did,” Racy Haddad said. “My parents thought, ‘We love El Paso, and this is our city. We want to be committed to the neighborhood and we want to honor the original design.”
A storied past
815 Rim Road was the second home built on the affluent street, according to the Haddad family. Architect Otto H. Thorman — the man behind several historic buildings in Manhattan Heights and Kern Place — designed the mansion in 1929.
Development along Rim Road began after devastating flooding took out tenements inhabited by El Pasoans, Rachel Haddad said.
Prominent families and El Paso’s first residential pool
Only a handful of families have lived in the home, according to deed records.
Charles and Deborah Given were its original owners before being sold to a different family in 1955.
According to the family, the backyard pool was the first private residential pool built in El Paso. However, El Paso Times archives indicate that in 1921, L.W. Hoffecker constructed a home at 1514 Montana, which included a 12-foot-wide, 40-foot-long, glass-enclosed pool.
The prominent Poe family would be the next to purchase the home, the Haddad family said. Their son, Dick Poe, would own one of the most popular car dealerships in the Borderland.
“Dick Poe was a little boy running around there,” Rachel Haddad said. “He grew up there.”
Then in 1965, businessman and boatmaker Tony Lama occupied the property with his wife, Julie. Nearly a decade later, they would entrust Norman and Dorathy Haddad with the estate.
Learn more about 815 Rim Road here.
