A gated Pasadena home that sprang up in the final days of the original Busch Gardens is on the market for $3.9 million.
Built in 1936 and updated in 2019, this 4,174-square-foot English Revival-style residence features four bedrooms and six bathrooms. It sits on over three-quarters of an acre in the tree-lined Lower Arroyo neighborhood near the Rose Bowl.
Records show the current owner purchased the property in May 2017 for just under $2 million from the late Claudia and Richard Selje, whose family lived there for 43 years.
Richard Selje, who died in 2017 at 93, was an industrial designer and faculty lecturer at the USC School of Architecture. As one-half of the Los Angeles-based Feldman-Selje Corporation in the 1950s, he contributed to the design of the first modern L-shaped office desk and helped pioneer the concept of the open-plan office in the U.S.
The Selje family preserved the home’s period character, and the present owner kept it intact while incorporating modern design elements and systems.
A walkway gently curves through a formal garden with mature roses and pruned hedges, leading to the entry courtyard. The creamy white stucco exterior features black plaster accents and diamond-paned windows with painted black wood trim. A turquoise front door, previously red, opens into the entrance hall.
Inside, now-scarce Cuban mahogany flooring runs throughout the house, complemented by high-end finishes.
The formal living room with a fireplace flows into an entertainment room with a vaulted ceiling, built-in bookcases and an original brick fireplace.
On the opposite side of the entrance hall is the dining room, which features wainscotting and a large picture window. This space connects directly to the kitchen, which opens to the family room.
Two of the bedrooms serve as primary suites, and a bonus room, loft space and large laundry room complete the floorplan.
The two-car garage doubles as a basketball half-court with a regulation National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) glass backboard.
Upgrades also include improvements to the HVAC, electrical and plumbing systems.
George Penner of Compass holds the listing for this home, built two years before Busch Gardens closed to the public.
The 40-acre pleasure park established by beer baron Adolphus Busch and his wife, Lily, in 1906 became a popular tourist attraction, reaching peak attendance of 1.5 million people in 1915. After it closed, filmmakers used the grounds for scenes from classics such as “Citizen Kane” (1941), “Gone With the Wind” (1939) and “The Adventures of Robin Hood” (1938).
The Busch family initially offered the gardens to Pasadena, but the high maintenance cost deterred the city. Ultimately, the property was sold and subdivided for housing.
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