Stacey Merryman & José Fernández Present
Modern Berkeley View Home
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$2,295,000
120 Hill Road, Berkeley
Property Photos
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Property Details
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beds
4
baths
4
interior
4,038 sq ft
neighborhood
Berkeley Hills
Berkeley Hills Oasis: Mid-Century Modern with Unrivaled Views and Grand Space
Mid-century home centered around a luscious lifestyle, with views from all bedrooms, living rooms, dining room, and kitchen. There are generously sized living room areas, decks to view, and a pristine pool to vacation at home. Rarely does a home of this caliber come to market. This modern California-designed home has had only 1 owner. Are you ready to be the next?
Tucked away on a special Berkeley Hills street, this home embraces stunning views of the western skyline, San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the brilliant Bay Area. The rooms are appointed to ponder the beauty of life, either to view the Bay or to enjoy one of the many outdoor spaces. Enjoy a dip in the starlit pool, also with views, and for your convenience, there’s a sweet changing room with a shower inside. You might discover inspiration on one of the deck spaces overlooking the vast garden, and find magic in your exchanges with nature.
With 4 bedrooms, an office, and 3.5 bathrooms, this home offers 3 levels with 4000+ sq ft* of artistry and opulence. The lot size is difficult to find in Berkeley. The sophisticated style will speak to your inner artist. The kitchen: It’s a pleasure to do the dishes while viewing the Golden Gate Bridge. Two refrigerators, a large pantry, and an eat-in kitchen. This house feels expansive while capturing special places to retreat and work, socialize, or just relax. Located in the North Berkeley Hills, 120 Hill Road is embraced by Tilden Park’s trails and amenities, plus Solano Avenue, the North Berkeley shopping district, College Avenue and North Berkeley shops and restaurants are just minutes away. There are many secret paths down to exercise or jaunt to meet friends in the heart of Berkeley. Enjoy the best of both worlds – city and nature!
*Per public record.
Mid-century home centered around a luscious lifestyle, with views from all bedrooms, living rooms, dining room, and kitchen. There are generously sized living room areas, decks to view, and a pristine pool to vacation at home. Rarely does a home of this caliber come to market. This modern California-designed home has had only 1 owner. Are you ready to be the next?
Tucked away on a special Berkeley Hills street, this home embraces stunning views of the western skyline, San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the brilliant Bay Area. The rooms are appointed to ponder the beauty of life, either to view the Bay or to enjoy one of the many outdoor spaces. Enjoy a dip in the starlit pool, also with views, and for your convenience, there’s a sweet changing room with a shower inside. You might discover inspiration on one of the deck spaces overlooking the vast garden, and find magic in your exchanges with nature.
With 4 bedrooms, an office, and 3.5 bathrooms, this home offers 3 levels with 4000+ sq ft* of artistry and opulence. The lot size is difficult to find in Berkeley. The sophisticated style will speak to your inner artist. The kitchen: It’s a pleasure to do the dishes while viewing the Golden Gate Bridge. Two refrigerators, a large pantry, and an eat-in kitchen. This house feels expansive while capturing special places to retreat and work, socialize, or just relax. Located in the North Berkeley Hills, 120 Hill Road is embraced by Tilden Park’s trails and amenities, plus Solano Avenue, the North Berkeley shopping district, College Avenue and North Berkeley shops and restaurants are just minutes away. There are many secret paths down to exercise or jaunt to meet friends in the heart of Berkeley. Enjoy the best of both worlds – city and nature!
*Per public record.
The Story of Hill Road's First Owners
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Anticipating the birth of their first child in 1956, Paul and Ethel Mussen (a UC Professor and an Audiologist/Speech Therapist respectively) built their family house at 134 Hill Road, at the time still basically a gravel road. 11 years later, now with two growing children and having established solid attachments to Berkeley, 120 Hill Road was built in 1966, and the family moved in during the fall of 1967.
By that time, Dr. Mussen was the director of The Institute of Human Development at UC Berkeley and had written a landmark Child Psychology text with 2 colleagues, enabling the family to build a larger house with a swimming pool that retained the spectacular view of the bay, proximity to Tilden Park, and the quiet familiarity of family life on Hill Road they had grown to love.
The pool became a fixture of sorts for the neighbor friends and children from the surrounding area neighborhood of Summit, Ajax, Atlas, and Grizzly Peak. UC families gathered for periodic dinner or pool parties, and various esteemed scholars from the world of developmental psychology, such as Jean Piaget, Margaret Meade, and Elizabeth Einstein had been guests at the house.
A growing art collection of modern and ethnographic works added to the beauty and lure of the house, as did the bountiful flower garden and the large verdant spaces surrounding the house and pool.
Ethel Mussen, who passed away last year at the tender age of 103, remained in the house until her passing, referring to 120 Hill as her Monticello By The Bay in her later years, and was profiled with the house in Berkeley Hill Living magazine in 2018.
By that time, Dr. Mussen was the director of The Institute of Human Development at UC Berkeley and had written a landmark Child Psychology text with 2 colleagues, enabling the family to build a larger house with a swimming pool that retained the spectacular view of the bay, proximity to Tilden Park, and the quiet familiarity of family life on Hill Road they had grown to love.
The pool became a fixture of sorts for the neighbor friends and children from the surrounding area neighborhood of Summit, Ajax, Atlas, and Grizzly Peak. UC families gathered for periodic dinner or pool parties, and various esteemed scholars from the world of developmental psychology, such as Jean Piaget, Margaret Meade, and Elizabeth Einstein had been guests at the house.
A growing art collection of modern and ethnographic works added to the beauty and lure of the house, as did the bountiful flower garden and the large verdant spaces surrounding the house and pool.
Ethel Mussen, who passed away last year at the tender age of 103, remained in the house until her passing, referring to 120 Hill as her Monticello By The Bay in her later years, and was profiled with the house in Berkeley Hill Living magazine in 2018.
Floor Plans
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Where to go
Neighborhood
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Centered above Shattuck or Cedar Streets which are at the foot of the Berkeley Hills, this quiet, relaxed residential community consists of a lot of modern architecture viewing the Bay Area, it also boasts California Craftsman homes, and English Tudors. Indian Rock, the largest example of the North Berkeley rhyolite outcroppings in the neighborhood, is popular with climbers honing their skills.
Nearby community spaces include Tilden Park, La Loma Park, Berkeley Rose Garden, The Lawrence Hall of Science, The Greek Theatre, Tilden Golf Course, and Lake Anza. For those working on home horticulture projects, Berkeley Horticultural Nursery on McGee Avenue and Berkeley Horticultural Nursery on Hopkins St offer advice, seeds, plants, and gardening tools. There are many paths which lead you to magnificent locations, either more nature in Tilden Park, or down to North or Central Berkeley.
North Berkeley delivers long retail districts that may be small, but delighting with gourmet-food purveyors. It's also a quick jaunt to College Ave, or the UC Berkeley Campus. It's possible to shop and eat like a European, going from store to store, purchasing everything you need for the week's dinner. The gourmet center down Cedar or the back down to College deliver; Monterey Market (an institution for more than 50 years), Monterey Fish Market, Magnani Poultry, and or the famous collective pizzeria, The Cheese Board make North Berkeley a mecca for food lovers. Outdoor cafes offer an opportunity to enjoy a latte in the glorious weather. Or stop on Shattuck at Saul's, Lo Coco's. So much fun living in Berkeley!
North Berkeley is close to the North Berkeley BART and the North Branch of the Berkeley Public Library. Designed by noted Bay Area architect Julia Morgan in the early 20th century, the latter building is one of the most stunning civic structures in Berkeley.
Nearby community spaces include Tilden Park, La Loma Park, Berkeley Rose Garden, The Lawrence Hall of Science, The Greek Theatre, Tilden Golf Course, and Lake Anza. For those working on home horticulture projects, Berkeley Horticultural Nursery on McGee Avenue and Berkeley Horticultural Nursery on Hopkins St offer advice, seeds, plants, and gardening tools. There are many paths which lead you to magnificent locations, either more nature in Tilden Park, or down to North or Central Berkeley.
North Berkeley delivers long retail districts that may be small, but delighting with gourmet-food purveyors. It's also a quick jaunt to College Ave, or the UC Berkeley Campus. It's possible to shop and eat like a European, going from store to store, purchasing everything you need for the week's dinner. The gourmet center down Cedar or the back down to College deliver; Monterey Market (an institution for more than 50 years), Monterey Fish Market, Magnani Poultry, and or the famous collective pizzeria, The Cheese Board make North Berkeley a mecca for food lovers. Outdoor cafes offer an opportunity to enjoy a latte in the glorious weather. Or stop on Shattuck at Saul's, Lo Coco's. So much fun living in Berkeley!
North Berkeley is close to the North Berkeley BART and the North Branch of the Berkeley Public Library. Designed by noted Bay Area architect Julia Morgan in the early 20th century, the latter building is one of the most stunning civic structures in Berkeley.
Stacey Merryman & José Fernández
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Stacey Merryman & José Fernández