Hot Property: Radio mogul's $2.4M Zionsville home

A fishing pond was on the must-have list. When Bill Shirk and his wife, Liz, were looking to move, they thought about building on a lot they owned near Eagle Creek.

Then the builder proposed they buy a seven-acre wooded lot in Zionsville and install their own fishing pond instead. The Shirks loved the idea.

And as their 13,670-foot home took shape, they added more special touches. A waterfall. A racquetball/basketball court. A basement movie theater. A custom swimming pool. An elevator. A great room with a 22-foot ceiling and balcony library.

But for Bill Shirk, owner of several radio stations, the favorite part remains that fishing pond, currently stocked with blue gill, bass and some 15-pound catfish.

"We were going to have a boat on Eagle Creek, but this is even better," he said.

Liz Shirk, who was responsible for much of the home's interior appearance, strove to create a space inside that mirrored the feeling outside.

Throughout the house, wood panels line the walls. In the kitchen, even the refrigerator lies behind a wood cabinet.

"Wood feels organic," Liz Shirk said. "It's a really peaceful house."

Other luxurious touches, many of them reflecting her predilection for Asian style, abound throughout the house. The dining room features a gold leaf ceiling, and a powder room has an antique rice chest that serves as the sink vanity.

The two-story great room features windows that almost reach the ceiling. There are multiple screened-in porches.

The master bedroom comes with several amenities, including two walk-in closets, a Jacuzzi bath and separate walk-in shower, and — most important — according to the Shirks, windows that afford views of the woods.

When she decorated the house, Liz Shirk saw to every detail. The basement kitchen and bathroom feature pony- and zebra-skin pulls on the cabinets and drawers.

On the second floor is a nod to Bill Shirk's past. A room he had built, intending to be his office, features a large wooden wrap-around desk perfect for a microphone. He never used it as an office, because his mother moved in to the bedroom next door and this became her sitting room.

A basement with ample family space, plus that basketball court, proved one of the favorite places for the Shirks' family and friends to gather over the past 15 years.

Bill Shirk, who retired earlier this year, had to travel for work. But the home was so comfortable, he said, that over the past decade and a half, his wife didn't take any vacations. Just living in the house with all its amenities was vacation enough.

Call Star reporter Shari Rudavsky at (317) 444-6354. Follow her on Twitter: @srudavsky.

About the house

• Location: 11863 E 300 South, Zionsville.

• Details: Four bedrooms, eight baths, finished basement, indoor basketball/racquetball court, home theater, elevator, four-car garage, outdoor pool, pond on 7-plus acres, 13,670 square feet.

• Asking price: $2.4 million.

• MLS: 21342887.

• Contact: Ted Butz, F.C. Tucker Co., (317) 566-2399, tedbutz@talktotucker.com.