Timeless Elegance
Classic design never goes out of style. In an ode to timeless elegance, we tour four stately residences in the San Francisco Bay Area, including a sprawling compound in Rutherford, a true belvedere overlooking the San Francisco skyline and Bay, a Riviera-inspired estate in Palo Alto and a bespoke Cape Cod style retreat perched on the slopes of Mount Tamalpais.
By: Kevin Daniel Dwyer
BELVEDERE CALIFORNIA
101 BELVEDERE AVENUE
If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, then an owner of a belvedere will likely have a great deal of beauty to behold. Derived from the Italian words bel (beautiful) and vedere (view), belvedere describes an ideal setting with uninterrupted vistas enveloped by beauty. Aptly sited and named, 101 Belvedere offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for just that—a chance to own a true belvedere in every sense of the word.
Waterfront living, captivating views, classic architecture and elegance define this ultra-prime residence on the western shore of Belvedere Island. Designed by Tiburon-based architect Warren Callister, the stately home is perched above the shores of Richardson Bay with approximately 9,500 sq. ft. of living space including guest quarters, for a total of seven bedrooms, six bathrooms and two half-baths.
Callister was considered a leader in The Second Bay Area Tradition, an architectural style defined by structures that responded to their immediate surrounds: regional climate, geography, materials and lifestyle. Callister made a practice of extensively walking and studying a project site prior to design conception, describing his work as a reflection of the region he was in. Callister told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2004: “You leave yourself open and it all starts flooding in. You’re listening for more than superficial things. The most powerful things come in when you listen. You have to find the architecture, you don’t come to it preconceived.”
101 Belvedere truly is a marriage of its dazzling surrounds and Callister’s architectural know-how, with vistas taking center-stage with unobstructed views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the San Francisco skyline framed by strategically placed windows in nearly every room. The endless views create the ultimate backdrop for refined interior spaces, including large formal living and dining rooms with direct access to view-side terraces through French doors, an intimate library with fireplace and the top-level master suite with dual bathrooms and dressing rooms and a private terrace. With five fireplaces, an enclosed garage with parking for seven vehicles, as well as three level lawns, the residence offers the luxury of ample space and manicured grounds highly coveted among the steep hillsides of Belvedere Island.
“This home offers timeless elegance in one of the most ideal and desirable settings in the world. Its new owner will have the pride of owning one of Belvedere’s finest homes; truly a distinguished trophy estate for the most discerning of buyers,” says listing agent Lydia Sarkissian of the Sarkissian Bullock Team. The belvedere is listed for $24 million. G
GlobalEstates.com
$24,000,000
Sarkissian Bullock Team
Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty
415.517.7720 | l.sarkissian@ggsir.com
Lic.# 00837358
PALO ALTO CALIFORNIA
51 Crescent drive
Architect Birge Clark is renowned for his trademark Spanish Colonial Revival style gracing many of the San Francisco Bay Area’s iconic buildings. On the Peninsula, he was known as “Palo Alto’s best-loved architect,” having left his signature mark on Stanford’s Lou Henry Hoover House, the Palo Alto Post Office, the Lucie Stern Community Center and many private estates.
Hannaston Estate is a prime example of Clark’s residential work. Originally designed in 1927 as a glamourous Italianate-style villa and extensively renovated between 2006 and 2009, the residence is a seamless blend of stunning period architecture, modern living and California indoor-outdoor living. Located in Palo Alto’s highly desirable Crescent Park enclave, the home is sited on beautifully landscaped grounds reminiscent of the Riviera, yet in the heart of the booming technology and venture capital center of the world. The property has just hit the market for $16,800,000, offering an unprecedented opportunity to own not only a grand-scale residence, but a piece of architectural history itself.
Hannaston Estate comprises a three-level, approximately 6,155 sq. ft. main residence with four bedrooms, as well as a private guest cottage and lush resort-like grounds including a colonnade and outdoor entertaining patio and a Hearst Castle-like swimming pool.
Approached through a grand motor court, Hannaston is entered through a grand-scale entrance foyer with Palladian-style arches and columns framing the dramatic curved staircase topped with an octagonal skylight perfectly illuminating gleaming Parquet-de-Versailles floors. A formal living room features the original 1927 beamed ceilings, a hand carved fireplace and French doors leading to the back patio and gardens. There is also a wood-paneled library with a secret door leading to the formal dining room adorned with a Murano glass chandelier.
For everyday living, the living room, kitchen and garden breakfast room offer generous and inviting space for culinary pursuits and lounging, each flooded with natural light thanks to arched Palladian-style windows overlooking the garden. The lower level features a paneled game room with fireplace and wet bar and a temperature controlled 1,000-bottle cellar, ideal for the most discerning of wine connoisseurs.
The upper level features a gallery atop the spiral staircase open to the foyer below, two en-suite bedrooms (each with private balconies), a fitness room, a bedroom suite or study and finally the large master suite, complete with fireplace, large attached bathroom, dual walk-in closets and a private balcony overlooking the grounds. G
YoungPlatinumGroup.com
$16,800,000
Gloria Young | John Young
Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty
650.380.9918 | 650.862.2122
Lic.# 01895672 | Lic.# 02036387
kentfield california
351 evergreen drive
What if sophisticated San Francisco design could be yours atop the majestic hillside of Marin’s iconic Mount Tamalpais? What if you could have the grounds and luxuries of a world-class resort with the privacy of a secluded retreat? What if you could be one with nature, yet minutes from cosmopolitan city living? You can have it all at 351 Evergreen.
Situated at the top of a knoll bordering the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed open space and surrounded by rolling verdant hills, the unrivaled setting of 351 Evergreen offers an abundance of privacy with panoramic views from Napa to the Marin Headlands. The home itself was masterfully designed by Los Angeles-based Sinclair and Associates and its owners and evokes the grandeur and classical design of San Francisco and Cape Cod architecture.
No detail was spared in the design and craftsmanship of the approximately 9,160 sq. ft. home, a three-level sprawling residence with distinctive spaces that are stately and modern, designed for both formal entertaining and everyday living. On the main level, there are formal living and dining areas with boxed beam ceilings, and a great room with 13-foot-high beamed ceilings with a wall of walnut cabinetry and a wood burning fireplace. There is a gourmet kitchen created for a true chef with two islands and a spacious eating area with a wall of French doors leading to the stunning gardens. The master suite is also located on the main level, complete with a gas fireplace, window seat and a private view deck. Additional highlights include a media/family room, three en-suite bedrooms and a wine cellar on the lower level, as well as a large fitness room and home office/game room on the upper level.
“This home has the sophistication and quality of a San Francisco estate in one of the most captivating and private settings in Marin. The property, with its impeccably manicured grounds, feels like a five-star resort,” says Lei Ann Werner, listing agent with Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty. “You really have to be here to take it all in. It’s emotional.”
The resort-like grounds were designed by landscape architectural firm Pedersen Associates, featuring a level artificial lawn, sports court—and perhaps the epicenter of the property—an epic pool area with raised built-in spa flanked by sunning beds. There’s also an outdoor stone wood-burning fireplace and built-in barbecue covered by a pergola wrapped in Wisteria and separate cabana with full kitchen and bath. An extraordinary viewing platform is located at the top of property, providing spectacular views perfect for meditation, yoga or camping. Meandering paths throughout the property lead to the mature orchards, a raised garden and flower beds and vista points exclusive to this property. The hillside retreat is listed for $10,995,000. G
KentfieldTrophyProperty.com
$10,995,000
Lei Ann Werner
Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty
415.710.0117
Lic.# 00994572
RUTHERFORD CALIFORNIA
iconic napa estate
The grandeur of European design and the relaxed lifestyle of Wine Country are one at this iconic Napa estate in Rutherford. Designed by renowned residential and hospitality architect Sandy Walker, the landmark residence is spread over approximately 4.25 acres, offering a rare opportunity to be situated within the Rutherford appellation and surrounded by vineyards of notoriety.
Walker, best known for his design of the Auberge du Soleil Resort and countless private residences of Napa Valley’s well-heeled, created this estate with stately proportions, featuring an approximately 8,814± sq. ft. main house with a massive limestone fireplace imported from France, multiple entertaining rooms, covered terraces and an enclosed garden dining room that can comfortably seat up to twenty guests.
Living quarters are sprawling and centered around a grand courtyard with an exquisite circular reflection pond with fountain, including a master suite with a sitting room, a second-level office and deck, a four-bedroom children’s wing with family room and sleeping porch. There’s also a 1,243± sq. ft., one-bedroom guest house with two full baths and its own private yard as well as a separate 1,201± sq. ft. caretaker’s cottage.
The verdant, manicured grounds are an extension of the home itself on a grand scale. The multiple gardens and outdoor living spaces incorporate an impressive swimming pool, a bocce court, orchard trees, vegetable gardens, fountains, play structures, a tennis court, an olive tree-lined driveway and expansive lawns. This idyllic compound is listed for $15,000,000.G
IconicNapa.com
$15,000,000
Dulcy Freeman | Michael Dreyfus
Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty
650.804.8884 | 650.485.3476
Lic.# 01342352 | Lic.# 01121795