Malibu is no stranger to record-breaking sales — especially not this year. David Geffen only recently sold his Carbon Beach compound for $85 million, smashing records for a residential property according to media accounts. Another iconic Mediterranean estate that sits on 16 acres directly above the Malibu Pier and Surfrider Beach in Serra Retreat fetched $65 million. Now, the beloved celebrity coastal haven can add another record shattering deal to its history books: a 24-acre piece of premium land located on Pacific Coast Highway recently sold for $50 million. The former Crummer property — which rests adjacent to Mailbu Bluffs Park and sits atop a bluff — commands stunning ocean and mountain views. It was purchased by director-turned-developer Scott Gillen and represented by Sandro Dazzan of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Malibu. Gillen plans to build a guard-gated community with five new homes, says Dazzan.
“This is one of the most breathtaking blufftop properties in all of Malibu,” said Sandro Dazzan, who grew up in Malibu and once played little league baseball games on the site, which was formerly known as the Crummer field. “My client had been eyeing it for five or six years, waiting for the right moment to purchase it. The day after they put it on the market, he decided to make his move and we put in an offer. It’s one of those rare sites that only come along once in a lifetime. It has the most incredible, unobstructed views of the Pacific overlooking Malibu Colony and the entire Santa Monica Bay.”
Gillen’s company, Unvarnished, has built about 23 houses over the past 13 years, including the $80 million newly constructed modern castle he debuted this summer on one of Malibu’s most iconic sites adjacent to Serra Retreat.
“As a director and a designer, you have to create something that’s not there,” Gillen told us. “You have to bring a lot of action and energy to a shot that doesn’t move. So much of what you do as a director is controlling the shot. For the New Castle, I want to limit what you see and when you see it. As you move farther into the house, you discover more ‘wow’ moments.”
Gillen is wasting no time planning the ‘wow’ moments at the former Crummer property; he has already “broken ground,” preparing the land in terms of cleaning it up, installing landscaping and beautifying the entrance. As lead designer, Gillen is planning to work with architect Richard Landry on the five “post-modern” or “mid-century modern” homes, adding even more cachet to the project.
“They’ll be post and beam with a lot of glass and high ceilings,” he revealed to the Malibu Times. “There will be different types of woods used, and the homes will be highly detailed and yet simplistic at the same time.”
The project is being planned to encompass five one-story residences spanning approximately 9,500 to 11,500 square feet, each resting on 2.5 to 5.8 acres. Pricing is set to range from $40 to $60 million each. The five homes will be built simultaneously over the next two-and-a-half years, and be completed in 2020.
Due to the project’s high profile, the five properties are already generating buzz in luxury circles, with several potential buyers reaching out to Dazzan and Gillen. Originally, Gillen’s plan was to wait until all five houses were finished and then “introduce the development to the public as a whole,” he told the Times, but he hasn’t ruled out the option of offering the homes for sale prior to completion.
Adds Dazzan, of the property’s landmark status: “If you were a local and grew up in Malibu, you knew the Crummer site as it was centrally located and had dramatic ocean views.”
