President Richard Nixon's Western White House, also called La Casa Pacifica by Nixon himself, is listed for $75M, reports the Wall Street Journal. The house, which Nixon bought in 1969, is set behind private walls, and covers around 15,000 square feet of living space including a 9000 sq ft main residence. The 5.5-acre San Clemente estate has 450 feet of oceanfront.
When Nixon resigned in 1974, he went back to his La Casa Pacifica and wrote his memoirs says OC Register. He reportedly enjoyed his stay there, finding peace in the secluded home and enjoying the calmness while strolling at the beach. But in 1980, he left his "favorite place" for New York.
The Nixon home and all 26 acres were sold to Herbert, founder of Allegan Pharmaceuticals which is famed for making eyedrops, Botox and breast implants, and developers George Argyros and Donald Koll. Gavin S. Herbert, 83 years old, has owned the estate for 35 years, states OC Register.
Rob Giem, the listing agent of the property, and part of Hom Sotheby's International Realty says, "It's one of the most extraordinary pieces of oceanfront property in Southern California," notes OC Register.
According to the outlet, the property consists of a grand main room, a bar, a guest suite, and a den. The former Nixon home also has a lighted tennis court, gazebo, well-manicured lawns, a vegetable garden, a greenhouse, and a private well for gardening.
It was well maintained by the staff living in the four-staff residences. Guests who visited the former president enjoyed the two-bedroom guest house, pool and pool terrace. The Wall Street Journal said that Frank Sinatra had been a guest in the home.
Even though most of the original estate was subdivided into private properties, the Western White House remains as a historic landamark until this day and for more years to come. In 2009, Herbert had an agreement with San Clemente City to preserve it for a decade in exchange for a tax break, notes the OC Register.
"We've always regarded it as a historic property," Herbert told the City Council. "It's like owning a big boat on the ocean. It gets a little rusted. We have projects going on literally every month to keep the property in order."
Long before it was a Nixon house, it was reportedly already a historic property. Hamilton Cotton, a financial partner of San Clemente founder Ole Hanson, built the home in 1926. President Franklin D. Roosevelt has graced the residence and played poker with Cotton, a Democratic Party supporter, as mentioned by OC Register.
The current owner is having a hard time parting with the property. Herbert admitted that selling the home is "a very hard decision," according to the Wall Street Journal.
"I think (my wife and I) felt we were caretakers. We care a lot about who the next caretakers would be," said Herbert, a onetime volunteer gardener of the estate under Nixon's presidency, turned owner of the Spanish Colonial-style home.
