Home of “Man who built Big Sur” listed for $6.95M

The former home of the “man who built Big Sur” has hit the market.

Missouri native Mickey Muennig, who began building his environmentally conscious buildings in the coastal city shortly after arriving in 1971, died in June 2021, SFGate reported. The 30-acre compound he built that served as his home for decades is asking $6.95 million.

The property at 50854 Partington Ridge Road has three separate houses. The main house’s round doorway, inspired by Chinese architecture, opens into an indoor atrium with a garden of tropical plants and a watering hole underneath a large skylight. Around the central atrium is the kitchen, study area and living room, which has access to two courtyards.

One feature of the home is that it was built on the axis of the winter solstice, said listing agent Jeannie Ford of Sierra Sotheby’s International Realty, meaning the sun sets on the fireplace.

The 300-square-foot glass house is where Muennig lived while he built the main house. It features a suspended bed and glass roof that allows for stargazing and provides views of the surrounding coast.

The design of the caretaker’s cottage, or guest house, was inspired by a nautilus shell. It also has a partial glass roof and features a round design like the other homes and also has an outdoor bath area with a claw-foot tub.

All three structures on the property, 1,500 feet above the water, are passive solar, meaning the walls and floors were designed to collect and distribute energy.

The property, which is covered in redwood and oak forests, has usable flat land and a swimming pond. Secluded from public view, the property is accessible via a private driveway.

Muennig’s work in Big Sur includes the Post Ranch Inn, the Hawthorne Gallery and the baths at Esalen.

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[SFG] — Victoria Pruitt