Craig Ellwood’s Johnson House | 1953 Steel-Frame Modernist Home in Crestwood Hills

[00:00:16]Well, this is exciting. Mafen, thanks for your hospitality.

[00:00:20]>> Yeah, my pleasure. Thank you for coming.

[00:00:22]>> Yeah. head out here at um Craig Elwood's Johnson house from 1953, which is a real treat. I've seen it a couple of times, but I had not seen it in its most recent remodeled condition, and so we've been dying to get in here, and we we're glad we finally made it through your firewall.

[00:00:45]>> Yeah. Yeah. Happy to have you guys here.

[00:00:47]Um that was probably 5 years ago uh that you're talking about when my client uh purchased the home here and he's been here ever since and he's done some fantastic work um maintaining the home and you know giving it some uh new life so to speak. Taylor Design. Uh she did a lot of the design work inside the home and then Chuck uh who was the contractor uh did all the work and uh really uh did not waste a penny at the end of the day um you know bringing this home um up to today's standards. The house is asking 6,295.

[00:01:22]Um we're here in Tiger Tale Road uh which Crustwood Hills is really known for its uh mid-century architecturally homes and um it's here at the very top of Tiger Tale. Um be Lamar Johnson back in 53 had this house built um by uh Craig Elwood and um so it's really has an interesting story and I'll share more with you about the ADU space and what that's about. But um but yeah, I was just going to comment and say that they did have they did the ADU and you were saying earlier that they have two separate addresses. Is that right?

[00:01:59]>> Yeah, that's correct. Um they did the ADU space uh has permits. Everything was done with permits and it does have its own separate address. And um as well as the 1515 um main house, the ADU is 1517. So it's a really great space. uh you know there's a lot of uses for it, but they really brought the space perfectly uh together with the rest of the house as far as the finishes and the quality there. One of the things I liked about the position and where they placed it is that it it falls in line with the design as well because if you look at it from this elevation, um the these studs here kind of act like a monolithic shade, a bristle and it adds privacy to the bedrooms, but then that's one half of the house. And then if you go down below, the ADU is protected by the the green. So, what the vertical slats are doing on top, the green is doing down below in terms of offering privacy, but on this side, uh, you know, you've got this kind of levered corner here, and it feels very open. And so, it's it's it's nice. They they put it in the exact right spot, I think. Yeah. So, they really took, uh, a lot of thought into making sure the ADU stayed in the original footprint of the home. And you definitely can see that when you are in this space because you would automatically think this was always here. And uh back in the day that space was actually used by be Lamar Johnson uh for his colleagues. Um he was one of the founding fathers of the community college system here in California. So he would have his meetings down there in that space. And so to see it, you know, uh created into an ADU space, um it's it's really interesting.

[00:03:47]>> What I find interesting is this is a really great marriage of old and new.

[00:03:51]You know, to me, this is one of Elwood's best houses, but when we went looking for it, there's not there are a few images in the books that we all have, but there's not a lot that's been written about the house, and there aren't a lot of um images, but it's one of his best houses in my mind. What I love about it is when you drive up, you're encountered first with that carport and so you don't even know the house is here really.

[00:04:14]>> It's true.

[00:04:14]>> And actually in the beginning, the beams actually run perpendicular to your direction. But when you go inside of the house, all of the beams run in this perspective towards this view. As we were talking about in that Young Woo house, it gives you that force perspective, that onepoint perspective into this remarkable view. And I love the hybrid between steel and wood. It's not all steel.

[00:04:44]>> Well, you've been here many nights and many days. What What describe to somebody who isn't able to be here. What is What is it like throughout the day?

[00:04:52]>> It it gives you that truly iconic LA feel that everyone, you know, longs for at the end of the day. the city lights, you know, uh the peace and quiet that you are able to have up here, but also see like the city down below. You know, I think a lot of people try to attain um a certain status, a look or feel when they come to LA and and being in the hills, you know, so to speak, because, you know, having that view of the city of LA and the ocean, um it's really iconic and it's truly something special and you definitely feel it up here.

[00:05:26]Well, this home is definitely uh been upgraded. It's bolted in place. It's bulletproof at the end of the day, even though it's been here 70 years. Um this house is not going to go anywhere. Um you know, it's very well protected and my client has definitely assured um you know, himself and you know, whoever the new owner ends up being that um you know, this house is is pretty safe um and it's going to be here for you know, another 70 years if you want to say.

[00:05:59]I feel like I could just live in this room. I mean, we got this cozy fireplace raised up off the ground 2 feet so that it's at eye level sitting in the couch that's been restored. We've got this amazing view out to the ocean. And we were touching on it off camera and it's the idea of, you know, is architecture meant to be preserved in time and restored and everything just kind of like a museum piece? I'm of the opinion that no, architecture is a living thing that, you know, it's meant to be lived in and people's needs change and um it's meant to evolve over time. And so I like the language that we first heard Barbara Lanre use, the Maitra scholar, and she described it as rehabilitation. And I've come to learn that that's actually preservation language. There are national preservation standards that use the word rehabilitation to describe this kind of evolution where there are some things that are original that have been preserved. There are some things from previous owners that were good decisions like the Terrasto floor that remain and there new interventions that are really well thought out and in you know keeping with the original design intent and to me it really works.

[00:07:15]>> You know a lot of the upgrades so to speak and the restoration work that we uh are talking about it's kind of unnoticed and you know that's a good thing especially when you are in a home of this caliber. um you know this pedigree mid-century um I think a lot of new change that happens you know sometimes it's very obvious and I like the not so obvious and you see that here throughout you know for example you were talking about the sprinklers on the ceiling here and that just goes to show that the owner is very uh protective of the space and you know what's been maintained here since 1953 when it was built and protecting it is extremely important. You know, from the roof with the sprinkler system that we talked about, uh to inside here, uh you know, it's it's really such a journey to walk through the home and see um all the positive changes, you know, that currently people appreciate when they live in a home. from the toilets, you know, from the HVAC system, you know, to how the home is bolted down and protected in the event of a, you know, earthquake to the Fleetwood doors that, you know, maintain, uh, you know, the heat and coolness throughout. And, um, you know, the list goes on. There's a lot of little things. Um, you got new appliances in the kitchen. Um, you know, beautiful custom window treatments throughout. outside. There's a brand new uh fire hose that goes out to the street. You know, it's been upgraded with tremendous pressure um in the event you need to uh you know, get it out and and water things down. And um so there's a car charger now out in the carport. Um there's a Tesla power wall. So in the event the home does get um you know impacted by you know power outages or whatever this home literally can operate on its own without any outside source.

[00:09:19]You would never know that though, you know. So, there's all these little fine great details at the end of the day that you probably wouldn't notice, but they're here. And um they definitely do make the home um a great living experience. So, >> I appreciate the fact that they introduced the owner introduced the Fleetwood here in such a successful way because it doesn't get in the way.

[00:09:42]Somehow the columns are still reading as these slender 4 by columns, but you've got the benefit of new hardware, new rollers, and double insulated glass, which I would imagine the utility bills have become much more affordable thanks to those interventions.

[00:09:59]>> Yeah, I definitely feel the integrity has maintained. I don't feel it's been compromised as we were talking earlier about you know old and new being brought into you know homes that we love and appreciate and uh you know if you do notice you do have the new with the old you still have the original glass up above and then um you know down below you have these beautiful um you know new window systems in place but it just goes together so great and I don't think it really is um a compromise at all you So, and um I think >> that's good art direction. You know, that's somebody that had the wisdom to say, you know what, if we put frame Fleetwood up there, it's going to start to make the clear story really small.

[00:10:48]Let's leave it alone. And it's the reference to the past, but the bulk of the floor to ceiling glass is double insulated. So, you know, it's not a black or white decision making process.

[00:11:00]We're going to replace every single piece of glass in here. was very thoughtful and intentional and that was a really good decision in my mind.

[00:11:09]>> It It's really like living in a piece of art. I know that sounds cliche, but >> No, it's true. It really is. There's It's I mean, this is just much different than living in any old house in the neighborhood. There are plenty of really ugly houses down the street in Brentwood that have no character and charm whatsoever that cost5 7 million. And this one is um the kind of home where I I walk in and I get goosebumps and then you know we start to articulate what it is in here that makes us have that experience. But we talk about the linear algebra equation and the pluses and minuses of you know the things like the shared driveway. This does not have a shared driveway. That's a big plus. The original architecture is a plus. The pedigree the name Craig Elwood. Um, and then all of the interventions, the quality of the finish, the quality of the finishes and construction here is extremely high. There's no punch list.

[00:12:07]Like when I look around, I'm really critical cuz I have a background in architecture and construction. And I don't, you know, I'm usually like, oo, so who did that? Like, but you know, you can tell that it's all very well thought out.

[00:12:19]>> Yeah. You know, the funny thing is I had a uh showing uh with the buyer client a couple of months ago and they actually did not like the house because there was nothing to restore and it was it was too perfect for them, you know. And you know, there's a truth to that. I mean, you come into this home and it's everything you could want in a pedigree in a century. And I mean, there's really nothing left to do. And you know, why would you want to do anything more? I mean, this is perfect as it is. I mean, from the restored brick here on the fireplace, uh, you know, that was originally painted white and, you know, it's been brought back to life. You know, you have that emotional attachment to the fireplace again. And, you know, the list goes on with all these, you know, uh, wonderful things about this house. there's really nothing left to do here because my client has done a tremendous job bringing it, you know, up to the uh today's standards, you know, and um also appreciating uh the past and, you know, and everything that this home was built for. It's really truly special.

[00:13:24]>> Um I did want to give Fieldon a a very big thank you for allowing us to come and hang out with you today. It took a little bit of emailing and DMing and texting, but uh here we are. And now we're looking for the right buyer.

[00:13:39]>> We have uh three bedrooms. Um yes, three bathrooms and the main house is uh 1676 ft. Uh with the ADU down below, it comes out to 1926 ft. And it's just under 300 ft. The the new ADU. Um, it definitely feels much bigger and um, definitely is a wonderful addition to the home here and um, yeah, so it's definitely something worth checking out and um, >> and tell us again the list price is 6295.

[00:14:15]>> Yes, that's correct.

[00:14:16]>> We're up at the top of Tiger Tail and we'd love to show it to you. We'd love to represent the buyer in the stewardship transition. We talk a lot about that. You know, I know your client is concerned and we're always concerned by matching a home like this to the next steward who is going to take what the past owners have done and the original architect and the current owner and designer have done and kind of take it into the next phase. So, that's our goal. That's our call to action. Call us. Call us now. If I now >> Yes.

[00:14:53]Thanks.

[00:14:54]>> Yeah. My pleasure. Thank you. Yeah.

[00:14:56]Thanks.

[00:14:57]>> Thank you, sir.

[00:14:58]>> All right.