Sale of 5 Historic Pasadena Homes Draws Curious Crowd

The offer was irresistible: Five adjacent historic homes on Pasadena’s oldest street were on the market Saturday for the first time in decades.

Lured by this unusual opportunity, throngs of people descended on the homes. Some were standing outside the properties at 9 a.m., waiting for real estate agents to open the doors.

Yet, many emerged with starkly different views of the properties, which had been shuttered for the last several years by their owner, the Worldwide Church of God. Some visitors saw an opportunity; others envisioned a money pit.

Asked what it would take to prompt an offer, Steve Herren, of Pasadena, wasted no time in replying: “tonight’s Lotto.”

The five homes were built between 1892 and 1911, and none lacked curb appeal. The least expensive was listed at nearly $1.1 million, with the priciest at $1.8 million; the Tournament of Roses Parade can be viewed from their front lawns.

“If I had to live here, I could,” joked Bari Razzaq, an entrepreneur from New York City who stumbled on the open house while driving by and was smitten with one in particular. “The houses give off a real California feeling.”

The homes sit on “Millionaire’s Row” on Orange Grove Boulevard. They aren’t quite mansions -- there are much larger and gaudier homes in the area. But they are billed as the last grouping of original homes on the street and include two Colonials, an Italian Revival, a Craftsman and a sprawling four-bedroom, four-bath Prairie home.

The glitch is that many will probably require thousands of dollars of work on the inside, where paint needs to be stripped, wallpaper replaced and hardwood floors refinished.

“It kind of makes you seasick,” said one woman as she toured the Craftsman, which was decorated in several unsettling shades of green.

Not that a few home-improvement issues seemed to matter.

Prompted by hundreds of invitations sent to top-producing real estate agents across town, a cavalcade of luxury cars rolled up to the homes.

“I’ve already had offers,” said Diane Hardie-Aurit, an agent for Dickson Podley Realtors, which is handling the sale. “Even from people who hadn’t seen them. One was a rock star. He wanted in Thursday.”

There were even people who wanted to buy all five, she said.

But Hardie-Aurit refused. She wanted all interested parties to have an equal chance to see the homes, which will be open again today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The properties have been part of the church’s Ambassador College campus for the last 40 to 50 years. But the school closed in 1990, when students were transferred to the church’s Texas campus.

With the church in the midst of a financial downsizing, the decision was made to develop much of its 50-acre Pasadena property and move its headquarters elsewhere in Southern California. At the church’s request, the homes were granted historic status by the city, meaning that buyers could not change the facades. Other changes could be made, but some would have to be approved by the city -- never an easy process.

“The saddest part of this is that they’re empty. There’s nothing sadder than an empty building,” said Bernard Schnippert, the director of finance and planning for the church, who once lived in one of the homes. “I get a great deal of pleasure knowing that someone will make this their home.”

The old Ambassador College campus is mostly deserted these days, but is still well tended to and resembles a botanical garden with its rolling lawns, old trees, fountains, koi ponds and numerous historic structures.

Current plans are to build more than 1,400 condominiums and other residences on the site. A draft environmental report on the project is due in the next month, but the development has already been controversial.

“We certainly think that housing is a good use and we certainly think that housing can be built there if appropriately designed and it’s a high level of quality and all that stuff,” said Sue Mossman, executive director of Pasadena Heritage, the city’s main advocacy group for preservation. “But the numbers [of condominiums] still look too high to us.”

The fuss over the five homes was partially inspired by the fact they were designed by notable architects of their day and incorporated all sorts of unique features and cubbyholes.

The largest is the 4,921-square-foot Scofield House, which is reminiscent of a Frank Lloyd Wright structure. It includes a dramatic entranceway that opens onto the main staircase to the second floor. The house has two other stairways, including one built for the exclusive use of the help.

The homes had been shuttered for several years and agents had to give them a heavy dousing of air freshener before the public was allowed in. It was also the first chance for longtime neighbors to see the interiors, which one agent described as “1960s contractor, fix-up, decorator run amok.”

The Dray House, a white Colonial, looked fit for the Cleaver family -- although the house’s innards had issues.

“You’ve got to gut it,” Todd Turner told his wife, Rashmi, as they toured the kitchen, which included cabinets and a refrigerator the color of a Granny Smith apple. The wallpaper was white and blue.

The Turners live in Toluca Lake. They are in the market for a new home -- and from the looks of things, this wasn’t going to be it. “There is a lot of potential here, but it’s still over a million,” Rashmi Turner said.

Many others saw limitless potential. “My clients want a project,” said Emmanuel “Long” Gealogo, a real estate agent.

After touring the homes, his clients believed three of the five were serious candidates for offers.

“They want a piece of history,” Gealogo added, as he walked to his Ferrari, excited about all the possibilities.