Pacific Heights, Estate of the Day
This stately home in the Pacific Heights area of San Francisco hit the market earlier this month. The Neo-Classic mansion sits high on a hill and was designed by Houghton Sawyer in 1912 for sugar baron Adolph Spreckels and his wife Alma, as their first residence. The five-bedroom mansion has Bay views and has been retrofitted for seismic integrity. The pictures reveal that in many areas the original wood work and beautiful moldings have been retained. As faithful readers know, I love a good library and this one is a beauty with a fireplace and plenty of shelves. The kitchen seems less than inspired, it looks like it belongs in some other home, certainly not a home worth this much money. And, while I'm finding fault, I can't understand why someone would take a home like this and then install little round ceiling lights. I like light as much as the next person but in a home with good bones like this, modern round lights set flush into the ceiling are an abomination. This home is listed at $25 million. Zillow's zestimate is screamingly off here, they've got it at close to $4 million.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
K Dec 25th 2007 6:13PM
Right with you on the kitchen. What the--? I can only guess that someone else uses it and cooks for them, because no prideful homeowner who cooks would want that kitchen. Or even those kitchen chairs.
As for the lights -- meh. Not great, not horrible. Light is such a personal thing. I have more types of lights and styles of lights than I could possible use, but ambient light, task light, entertaining light, reading light -- it's all necessary and can be so different. My BF often says "I don't mind having to restore a vintage place, but I want bright modern lights and a new kitchen. No exceptions. I don't want to squint or put up with a "charming" stovetop or "period style light fixtures." " So perhaps there was some of that attitude -- the bones are good enough, but the lights have to be plentiful and contemporary?
artifex Dec 26th 2007 2:05AM
I wonder if originally the kitchen was in an outbuilding, and that space was a butler's pantry or prep area, and so it was converted to full meal prep. That could explain the fact that, from what we see, it seems abbreviated. (I'm not excusing it, just trying to make sense of it.)
That office area looks weird, too, absolutely no character to it except for the mini awnings. Seriously, it looks like for part of this house they totally forgot where they were. If I had that house, I'd want to restore it, take pride in historical status.
I do have to admit, though, that shot of the rear view with a glimpse of the garden is a stunner. As is the view from that window.
mike Dec 28th 2007 5:14PM
Ditto the office comment .. especially surprising given that this is Danielle Steel's home. Maybe she actually writes somewhere else?
Richard - Sparkletack Feb 5th 2008 8:06PM
Danielle Steele actually lives a little further up the hill, at 2080 Washington Street -- that was the second (and even grander) residence of Adolph and Alma Spreckels, designed for Alma by George Applegarth and finished in 1913.
For way, way more on the subject of Alma Spreckels, visit http://www.sparkletack.com/2008/02/03/66-alma-de-bretteville-spreckels/