BERKELEY — The landmark “Temple of ‘Wings” estate nestled on a hillside in Berkeley has been bought for more than $5 million, ending decades of ownership by the billionaire heir to the Getty oil fortune.
A group headed up by a commercial real estate executive based in the Sacramento County city of Carmichael has bought the iconic estate, according to documents on file in Alameda County and the California Secretary of State.
Exterior areas of the “Temple of Wings” estate at 2800 Buena Vista Way in Berkeley, 2023.
Gordon Getty, the billionaire son of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty, and his wife Ann Getty bought the “Temple of Wings” mansion in 1994. The estate, at 2800 Buena Vista Way, is an official Berkeley city landmark.
The new owner paid $5.85 million for the property, according to documents filed on Sept. 25 with the Alameda County Recorder’s Office.
“Temple of Wings” mansion at 2800 Buena Vista Way in Berkeley.
Interior sections of the “Temple of Wings” mansion at 2800 Buena Vista Way in Berkeley.
“Temple of Wings” was listed at $5 million, according to a brochure circulated by Grubb Co. real estate agents Anian Tunney and Adrienne Krumins and Coldwell Banker agent Joel Goodrich. The agents arranged the property transaction.
Pete Halimi, principal executive of Carmichael-based Oracle Properties Development, acted through an affiliate to buy the property. The affiliate has the same address as Oracle Properties. Halimi is listed as the manager of the entity that now owns the Berkeley estate.
The Halimi-led entity bought the mansion through an all-cash deal, the Alameda County documents show.
The estate’s most eye-catching features are 16 Corinthian columns inspired by ancient Roman and ancient Greek architecture.
The villa contains three bedrooms and totals 4,000 square feet. The residence was built in 1910 and was initially envisioned as a dance studio for attorney Charles Boynton and his wife Florence Boynton, according to the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association.
The original house was burned in a catastrophic wildfire that roared through the Berkeley hills in 1923. The residence was rebuilt in 1924 using the original columns.
That century-old structure survives as the present-day mansion.
The villa commands sweeping views of the Berkeley, Oakland and San Francisco skylines, including the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge, the Grubb Co. brochure states.
When Gordon Getty, who is a composer and musician, and his wife bought the house in 1994, they furnished the villa with its origins in mind, according to the marketing materials. Ann Getty passed away in 2020.
“During their ownership, the home was meticulously maintained within the historic nature of its origin,” the real estate agents stated in the brochure.