1920s Piedmont estate hits market at record ask

A 1923 estate designed by Oakland architect Claude B. Burton in Piedmont has been listed for $12 million, setting a new record in the upscale Oakland suburb.

The ask on the 7,165-square home at 70 Sea View Ave. comes to $1,675 per square foot. The property has been owned by Barbara Roach since a 1971 sale for $125,000, according to public records.

70 Sea View Avenue, Piedmont (Anian and Adrienne)

The current ask on the property would match the highest ever sale in the East Bay municipality overall and beat the mark handily by square foot. A 9,928 square foot home on Wildwood Avenue sold for $12 million, or $1,209 per square foot, last month–the first residential deal to ever break into eight figures. That sale came around the same time when Burlington Stores CEO Michael O’Sullivan listed his Piedmont property for $12.75 million. O’Sullivan’s century-old Beaux Arts home went off the market without a sale in May, while the Wildwood property was in contract at the end of April and closed this month.

Roach’s property sits on one acre “of beautifully landscaped grounds” and “truly represents the Gold Standard of large estates in the East Bay,” according to the listing site from agents Anian Tunney and Adrienne Krumins of the Grubb Company. The home is 7,165 square feet and has 5 bedrooms, 3 full and 2 half bathrooms.

70 Sea View Avenue, Piedmont (Anian and Adrienne)

Key features included entertaining rooms with 14 foot ceilings, “a dramatic salon hallway with soaring coved ceilings” and period moldings, large French doors looking onto a grand terrace and “exquisite grounds that feature a grand fountain and detailed landscaping.”

“This residence harkens one to Versailles with elaborate trellises, decorative ponds and beautifully landscaped gardens,” said Tunney and Krumins.

70 Sea View Avenue, Piedmont (Anian and Adrienne)

The lower level includes a ballroom or recreational room, as well as a spacious family room with a large fireplace and kitchen that overlooks the garden, and has access to the gated driveway and three-car garage. The upper level features the primary bedroom suite, which includes a walk-in closet plus a bathroom with a soaking tub and marble countertops.

70 Sea View Avenue, Piedmont (Anian and Adrienne)

Piedmont broke away from Oakland in 1907 and got the title of “the city of millionaires” about a decade later when it had more millionaires per square mile than any other city in the U.S. While it is no longer the most affluent city in the country, the larger estates from that era continue to attract captains of industry, as well as professional sports stars and musicians such as Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt of Green Day.

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