From the Los Angeles Times Real Estate section
Home of the Week
No place like dome
in Big Bear Lake
By Ruth RyonLos Angeles Times Staff Writer
December 23, 2007
FUTURIST-philosopher Buckminster Fuller's Midcentury work on geodesic dome homes was the inspiration for this house near Big Bear Lake.
Custom built in 1987, the home's dome structure is intact, but its interiors have been redesigned, redecorated and furnished with the concepts of feng shui in mind.
The energy-efficient dome home was "green" before the recent push for environmentally conservative living. The exterior surface area of a dome is only about one-third of that of a box shape enclosing the same floor space. Less exposure to outdoor temperatures makes the house less expensive to heat and cool.
About dome houses: A dome design can support itself without internal columns or load-bearing walls, allowing for lofty ceilings. Dome houses are partial spheres made up of arrangements of triangles, which are stronger to build with than rectangles. So these structures are resistant to damage from snow, earthquakes and wind.
Asking price: $3.3 million, furnished.
Size: The tri-level, gated compound has four bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms in 3,478 square feet.
Features: The home includes a sauna; a two-car garage; two fireplaces (the fireplace in the living room is wood burning); a wet bar; an entertainment area; electronically controlled, pentagonal skylights; an octagonal foyer entry; an upstairs loft office; a library and a master-bedroom suite with a dressing room; and reproductions of artworks by Monet and Van Gogh.
Its backyard property line marks the beginning of the San Bernardino National Forest.
Where: At 7,400 feet above sea level, the home sits at one of the highest elevations in the Upper Moonridge area of Big Bear Lake.
Listing agent: Paul Yalnezian at Right Home, (800) 873-8373.
