Home of the Week: New England style near Santa Barbara

When Hobbs and Sharon Marlow built a classic New England-style home on one of the Santa Barbara area’s more desirable stretches of beach in 1994, they based their design on a house they had admired in Massachusetts.

Now, following the death of Hobbs Marlow three years ago and the decision by his widow to downsize, the Padaro Lane property has come on the market for the first time.

Standing on a low bluff an easy walk to the beach, the imposing six-bedroom property with separate guesthouse is just off Highway 101 between Summerland and Carpinteria.

President Clinton once stayed on this exclusive street, which is still favored by celebrities. Neighbors include actors Kevin Costner and Rob Lowe.

The two-story house is characterized by large, airy, light-filled rooms, many of which offer head-on ocean views. Three of the four upstairs en-suite bedrooms face the ocean, and two of them, including the massive master suite, have balconies.

Downstairs, the living room, a dining room with floor-to-ceiling bay windows, the kitchen and other communal areas have views across lawn and flower beds to the water and the distant Channel Islands. The front door offers an unobstructed viewpoint through the house to the ocean beyond.

The foyer features a sweeping staircase with an oak and wrought-iron banister. Oak floors run through much of the downstairs, including the kitchen. Berber carpet softens the living room and the mahogany-paneled study.

The kitchen, breakfast nook and step-down family room constitute a single, open-plan area of close to 1,000 square feet. The kitchen, dominated by a marble-topped island, features matching marble-topped cabinetry and a beamed ceiling.

The master bedroom suite includes a sitting room, cedar-lined walk-in closets and dual bathrooms — one with a marble-tiled spa tub and shower, the other with a pink-tiled bath and shower.

Downstairs are a laundry, a butler’s pantry with built-in cherry-wood cabinetry, and a wet bar. Upstairs are a second study, a sewing room with an additional laundry and attached linen closet, and attic space.

To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send high-resolution color photos on a CD, caption information, the name of the photographer and a description of the house to Lauren Beale, Business, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012. Questions may be sent to homeoftheweek@latimes.com.