From museum to luxury artist’s retreat: See Santa Cruz CA home with ocean views for sale
An artist and author is selling her unique oceanside Santa Cruz property, which comes with a spacious mid-century modern home, art studio and inspiring views, for $7.75 million.
The residence at 1004 West Cliff Drive in the Northern California beach town of Santa Cruz has a total of six bedrooms, five bathrooms and 3,236 square feet of living space, according to the property listing.
“Perhaps the most remarkable offering this house presents is that its sitting above the cliff provides both sunset and sunrise views,” listing agent Kimberly Ward of Compass said.
The property includes a two-bedroom ocean-view accessory dwelling unit (ADU). The artist’s studio, with a private entrance, also comes with an ocean view.
The residence is owned by environmental artist and UC Santa Cruz art professor Barbara Benish, who bought the home for $1.8 million in 2014, according to public property records.
West Cliff Drive was developed for housing after World War II when its electric streetcar lines were pulled out, Benish said.
“1004 West Cliff Drive was originally built in 1953, in a humble ranch style, by a local Italian immigrant fishing family,” Benish said in an email to the Sacramento Bee. “Purchased, and then remodeled in 2018 under the direction of Czech architect/engineer Petr Kalny, a student of Richard Neutra in Zurich, the home was updated to a classic modern design with a second story and an additional ADU and artist studio.”
The renovated home incorporates the redwood siding and floor planks from the original 1950s house, according to Compass.
The house is located where the Free Cliff Museum once stood, according to Compass. In the 1890s, John A. Moore built the museum on West Cliff Drive with a focus on specimens of local plants, animals, birds and fish, according to the Santa Cruz Sentinel. He sold souvenir books, sea shells, pressed seaweed, postcards, and picnic necessities, according to the newspaper, and even adopted a circus monkey that became a big draw for the museum. The museum and the building that housed it are gone.
Just steps from the beach, the modern property is eco-friendly, according to Compass, with owned solar, an EV charging hook-up, a household grey water system and a process to capture rooftop rainwater.
“This colorful property includes a hand-built water tower sourced from the local forests and a two unique vintage porthole main doors,” Ward said.
West Cliff Drive is considered a unique and desirable location in Santa Cruz, Ward said, where properties don’t come up for sale too often. Only one other home is currently listed for sale on the street. In 2023, only one West Cliff Drive home sold.
“The other thing that makes this property unique is that it is sitting on almost a quarter acre, which I believe is the largest lot on West Cliff Drive, and has no neighbors to one side of the property,” she added. “So it makes the property incredibly private and peaceful. Most lots in the neighborhood tend to be 5,000 to 6,000 square feet with their lot footprint maxed out, making it not really usable.”
Next to Benish’s property lies a park she helped establish for the restoration of riparian habitat.
The location provides spectacular vistas.
“Imagine starting your day on the front deck, soaking in breathtaking views of whales and dolphins, or unwinding in the living room while the beauty of the sea unfolds before you,” the property listing states. “The architecture is not only visually captivating but also designed for comfortable, everyday living, creating a harmonious blend of style and functionality.”
The listing includes an additional parcel providing 2,875 square feet, “expanding your ocean-view paradise to over a quarter acre,” according to the listing.
A new sea wall is being constructed in front of the home.
“Because the property fronts county land, a sea wall is being built and installed to protect the home by the county and will be maintained by it, saving the future homeowners a huge responsibility and cost,” Ward said.
As the sea wall nears completion, “this property evolves into a timeless legacy home, ensuring that your coastal dreams will endure for generations to come,” according to the property listing.
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