Make Myself at Home: Spacious Westside Estate

Address: 1246 West Micheltorena Street

Status: On the market

Price: $1,995,000

Whether you live on the Riviera, the Mesa, or in the heart of town, if you are high enough in Santa Barbara, you have astonishing views. I attend Santa Barbara Middle School, which has the best views of all, from downtown to the harbor and ocean. You can truly see everything. My house on the Mesa also has a wonderful view — as long as it’s not a foggy morning, of course.

From this goldmine of incredible views, I think I may have found the jackpot last week. The house is where the end of Micheltorena Street meets the chaparral of the upper Westside, at 1246 West Micheltorena. Either from the living room or the multitude of balconies, one can look out and see all of downtown Santa Barbara, including landmarks such as the Santa Barbara Mission, the County Courthouse, the Granada Theater, and the Arlington Theater. This house anchors the “Los Tres Estados,” three neighboring homes that were built in the 1990s with matching adobe themes and coloring in each house.

The house is a Mediterranean style that comes with a low-maintenance four acres of wilderness. With a nice courtyard and shady oak trees out back, I could easily picture a wedding happening there, or events on the smaller scale, such as a nice dinner party while the sun sets over Santa Barbara, watching as the lights slowly start turning on from house to house.

The interior offers a homey and spacious feel. When you walk inside, the central area of the house also has an amazing view and a fire pit in the corner. The cathedral ceiling combined with the nice spaciousness of the house is just a match made in heaven.

From the living room, you walk into an open kitchen, with all attention centered on an island in the middle. This leads onto the first story balcony, from which you are able to not only look down on the whole city, but also the backyard and a path that leads into the woods. Walking down the stairs, you come across the first of 5 bedrooms with another one right across from it. There are 3 more rooms further down the hall, which, while not classified as bedrooms, could be used as such or for more storage space. While there are two more balconies downstairs, neither leads down to the backyard. To access the backyard, you have to go around the front on a nice secluded path that wraps around the house.

The backyard has a vase-shaped fountain that is the centerpiece of sharply trimmed bushes, assorted agaves, and other plants. When you walk out even farther you get to a path that leads out into the wild four acres of land that come with the house.

Right in between the heart of the Mesa and the middle of the Westside, the house has everything within a five-minute drive away. This five bedroom, four and a half bath, two family room, 3,684 square foot house is a great fit for a family, or, perhaps, a couple looking to have guests live with them. It also has a two-car garage that leads out to the driveway and an appealing dark wood gate.

So whether it’s the details like the beautiful hardwood floors and cathedral ceilings, or the amazing views from the well-detailed balconies, or just the overall homey atmosphere and how it envelops you with its four acres, this house has a little bit of everything. It is just waiting for the right owner to move in and call it home.

Gabriel Guinn, a 7th grade student at Santa Barbara Middle School, spent a week working at The Santa Barbara Independent as part of their annual Career Study Week. His self-professed obsession with real estate was a perfect match for the research and writing for our Make Myself at Home column.
1246 West Micheltorena Street is currently for sale in Santa Barbara, listed by Ken Switzer of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices. Reach Ken at 680-4622 or KenSwitzer1@yahoo.com