Long Beach ‘cottage’ a quiet place to scope out the sea
Why Long Beach? That was the question posed to Stephen Hansen four years ago when he bought this oceanfront property and created a custom-designed, tri-level home. Why not Newport Beach or Laguna Beach? His answer: “In Long Beach, you get understated elegance; it’s Newport Beach without the ostentation.”
And that’s just what with this self-described laid-back former Internet and entertainment-industry entrepreneur wanted. He sought a quiet place to look at the ocean minus the cars, tourists and crowds.
The Long Beach Peninsula’s Seaside Walk is a residential strip on the beach where Los Angeles and Pasadena residents started building weekend homes in 1902, according to an Alamitos Bay Beach Preservation Group website. The beach was created with sand dredged from Alamitos Bay in the ‘60s. The Peninsula features a mix of single-family homes, duplexes, condos and apartment buildings. It is free of retail stores and auto traffic.
“When people visit here, they feel like they’re on vacation and relaxed,” Hansen said.
About this house: Hansen and interior designer Philip Nimmo of Philip Nimmo & Co. took the home “down to the studs” so Hansen could achieve his domestic dream: a relaxed place where his kids could “keep their shoes on and sit on the furniture without worrying about ruining anything.”
Sure, the kids can bring their sandy feet onto the hand-hewn, antique-wood floors, and then plop outside on any of the patio-balconies and watch the waves roll in. But no one would mistake this 4,200-square-foot, three-bedroom, fully remodeled home for a little cottage by the sea. The limestone, tumbled marble and interior earth tones reflect the seller’s upscale taste, while “maintaining his down-to-earth style,” Nimmo said.
Asking price: $3,985,000
Features: The home has oceanfront views; floor-to-ceiling windows; Viking kitchen appliances and custom cabinets; limestone kitchen counters; 19th century terra-cotta kitchen back splash tiles; a media room-den; a family room; an oversize tub in master bathroom; a large walk-in closet in the master bedroom; a limestone fireplace in the living room; ocean-facing balconies; and a three-car garage.
Where: Seaside Walk in Long Beach
Listing agent: Jack and Barbara Irvin, Coldwell Banker Coast Alliance: (562) 961-1203.
To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send color photos with caption info on a CD and a description of the house Real Estate, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., CA 90012. Send questions to homeoftheweek@latimes.com.