Kent Kresa, a giant of Los Angeles’s aerospace industry, has unloaded a Beverly Hills mansion he developed for $37 million, Los Angeles County property records show.
A limited liability company Kresa manages — titled 512 Perugia Way — sold the parcel at 1500 Gilchrest Drive to an unidentified buyer, which registered last month with the state of California as The Promontory LLC.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Gary Friedman, chief executive of furnishings company Restoration Hardware, was the buyer linked to the Promontory LLC.
The sale could represent a huge return on investment for Kresa, who bought the .75 acre Beverly Hills parcel for $4.7 million in 2010, and then shepherded the construction of a two-story, 11,000-square-foot spec mansion that was completed last year.
The property hit the market last June, billed as “The Promontory” and featuring stone shell walls, a four-car garage as well as common luxury amenities for the high-end market such as spa, gym, and “infinity” swimming pool.
Tim Morris designed the abode, and Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker plus Drew Fenton of Hilton & Hyland served as sales agents. Messages left with the agents Friday were not returned.
Buyer agent Kurt Rapapport of Westside Estate Agency also did not return messages. It was an especially busy week for Rappaport, L.A.’s top agent by sales volume, according to TRD’s most recent calculation. The agent closed two Bird Streets properties for north of $30 million earlier in the week.
Kresa served as chief executive officer and chairman of the board for aerospace and military contracting giant Northrop Grumman, after years at the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
He moved Northrop’s headquarters to El Segundo from Irving, Texas, though Northrop later shifted its headquarters to Falls Church in Northern Virginia.
Kresa, who is 81-years-old, is currently head of the MannKind Corp., a biopharmaceutical company located in Westlake Village. A message left with Kresa on Friday through MannKind Corp. was not immediately returned.
Friedman has worn many hats for Madera, California-headquartered Restoration Hardware, and returned as company co-CEO in 2013.