If you had to choose between $5 million or an iconic Mid Century home, which would you take? It might sound like a fantastical question, but if you’re entering this year’s Palos Verdes Art Center Dream House Raffle, you might need to actually make a decision.
The annual raffle has several significant cash prizes this year, but the coveted grand prize is the historic Kelsey House in Pasadena, Calif. Designed in 1962 by architects Thornton Ladd and John Kelsey for Kelsey and his family, the home was designated a historic landmark in 2005 and features some of those light, bright, indoor-outdoor elements California modernism is known for.
From Daily Breeze:
The three-bedroom house wraps around a swimming pool set in an atrium with an opening at the top. A round, formal dining room is finished in bleached teak panels. In the living room, glass pocket doors lead to a second, covered living room outdoors. Sunlight illuminates the home’s terrazzo and concrete slab floors through an array of sliding doors and large windows. A guest house has a separate entrance.
The residence is covered under the Mills Act, which offers homeowners significant property tax savings for maintaining a historic property. The house last sold for $2.695 million in March 2015, according to the Multiple Listing Service.
The Pasadena-based partnership of Ladd and Kelsey is a significant one, yet their names largely get omitted from the conversations about the top architects and designers of the era. Area MCM enthusiasts can learn more about the two acclaimed local architects at a new exhibit, “Ladd & Kelsey: Noble Places,” running now through May 26 at the Palos Verdes Art Center.
Tickets for the raffle, which can be entered until May 9, cost upwards of $150 each, with proceeds going towards the center’s many exhibition, education and outreach programs.
Read more about the raffle here, and try your luck at winning an exquisite new home. At that price, what do you have to lose?
