In a twist on the famous phrase from the movie “Field of Dreams,” sometimes if you build it, you’re the one who has to come. Such may be the case of C. Frederick Wehba, the founder of Bentley Forbes Group LLC, a major player in the commercial real estate investment world.
Wehba and his wife, Susan, have listed their primary residence in Beverly Hills for $9.8 million. They have also listed the prominent Sunset Boulevard home that Wehba has built, also in Beverly Hills, for $68.5 million, as reported in the Business Journal in June. The Wehbas are active in the Bel-Air Presbyterian Church and the new residence was constructed with a large music room to accommodate church events.
Since 1983, Wehba has bought, sold and/or financed more than $3 billion in property – office buildings, shopping centers, warehouses and land for development. Bentley Forbes, founded in 1993, invests in multitenant commercial properties, with a focus on signature trophy assets. Current holdings include the Dallas Four Seasons Golf Resort and Club (the world’s largest Four Seasons resort); Chicago’s Prudential Plaza; and the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C.
Closer to home, Wehba is known for his philanthropy, devoting his attentions toward political and community projects. He serves on the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Board of Governors, the Beverly Hills Education Foundation and the International Circle of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council. He sits or has sat on the boards of the Boy Scouts of America, California Baptist University, the Institute for Social and Economic Policy in the Middle East (part of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University), the Dove Foundation and the John Wayne Cancer Institute. In 1990, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award as Man of the Year from then-Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley.
The 9,163-square-foot house he has listed was built in 1987. The two-story French villa has five bedrooms and exquisite details throughout. There are intricate moldings, paneling, and leaded and beveled glass doors and windows. The dramatic entryway has a 25-foot-high ceiling and a curved wrought-iron staircase. There is a cook’s kitchen with professional grade appliances, a rotunda breakfast room, temperature-controlled wine storage and bath with sauna. The landscaped yard includes a built-in barbecue, and kitchen, pool and spa.
The newly constructed home he will move to, on the market for $68.5 million, has 36,000 square feet with hand-painted detailing and state-of-the-art electronics. It sits on nearly two acres and boasts a hand-carved imported limestone exterior, onyx marble columns, French moldings with 24-karat gilt, a tournament play tennis court, a pool pavilion and two-story circular entry way with a skylight.
Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker Previews International, Beverly Hills South office, co-listed the new construction with Joyce Rey, of that same office. Mills is also the listing agent of the $9.8 million property, along with Maurico Umansky of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, according to the MLS.
Truck Route
Nick Radoi is a guy I’d like to meet. Radoi, who runs a trucking company that schleps produce around, is selling a La Habra Heights house for $21 million. Clearly, I made a wrong turn on the road to riches.
Radoi is the owner of Express Connections Inc., which operates 180 to 240 tractor trailers nationwide every day, and has an additional 20 to 30 empty trucks ready to pick up loads on either coast at all times. Established in 1985, Express Connections is regarded as one of the premier coast-to-coast shipping companies, shipping fresh produce across the states in less than three days. The company also warehouses what it ships.
The house, well the house is a breath-stealer. The asking price includes a buildable extra parcel in case the 9,000-square-foot residence on the first lot isn’t big enough for you. Frankly, I’d spend my days in the pool, which has a waterslide with a ring of fire, a waterfall, grotto, cave and fountain. There’s also a swim-up bar and a pool house with walls of glass. And if I started to prune-shrivel, I’d move into the casino room where I’d no doubt find my husband playing the slots or watching the multiple TVs – sporting events on all of them. Back outside, there is a volleyball court and a full kitchen with sports bar. The property has a home theater, wine cellar and library. There are five bedrooms and nine bathrooms.
Marguerite Wheery of Teles Properties, Brentwood, is the listing agent.
Brentwood Listing
If there is a godfather of modern-day political reform, it’s Tracy Westen, chief executive and founder of the Center for Governmental Studies.
Westen and Linda Lawson listed their one-of-a-kind four-bedroom Brentwood home for sale at $5.85 million, then dropped the price to $4.85 million. Built in 1991 by Eric Owen Moss, the home has been included in more than 20 books and magazine spreads, including House & Garden, House Beautiful and Harper’s Bazaar. The literature describes it as “a geometric tour de force of steel, wood and concrete, struts and beams, cones and spheres, circles and voids.” It has soaring ceilings, more light than an earthly sun can be expected to produce, art walls and ocean views. The 5,100-square-foot home has a grand gallery living room, a central circular kitchen overlooking the dining room, and an upper gallery walkway rooftop aerie with ocean view.
Westen, who worked during the Carter administration at the Federal Trade Commission as deputy director for consumer protection, founded CGS in 1984. He helped shape dozens of state and local ballot measures, laws and ordinances to bring about campaign finance reform. He teaches part time at USC’s Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism and the UCLA School of Law, and has written almost a dozen books on ballot initiatives, judicial reform and campaign finance reform. Westen founded the California Channel in 1989, a network that provides C-Span-like coverage of the state government.
David Mossler and Chaya van Essen of Teles Properties, Beverly Hills, have co-listed the property.
Ann Brenoff can be reached at [email protected].
