Hot of yesterday's Berkeley Hills Midcentury redo comes yet another. This preserved jewel, located at 10 Atlas Place, has four bedrooms, five baths, and around 3,741 square feet. Built in 1940, it was remodeled in 1964 by noted architect John Hans Ostwald — his other area works include the Bancroft Center, the now-demolished South Branch Library, and his posthumously built St. John’s Presbyterian Church on College Avenue — and has retained almost all its character.
The estate also boasts a pool, cabana, large garden, huge decks, a wine cellar, and wet bars. In other words, this home would make the perfect place for entertaining.
The spiral staircase is particularly noteworthy/envy-inducing. Easy to see why: Ostwald, who was born in Berlin, raised in Vienna, and educated in Switzerland, brought European sensibilities to the region's of-the-time modern architecture.
"[H]e married the Swiss chalet architecture with modern architecture," Walter Thomas Brooks, a former architect associate, told San Francisco Chronicle in a 2006 interview. "He was like a transition. He made it easy for people to enjoy modern architecture."
- Midcentury Modern Berkeley Revamp Asks $1.4M [Curbed SF]
- John Hans Ostwald brought a touch of Europe to the Bay Area [SF Chronicle]