Anyone who’s ever driven through Seal Beach on the Pacific Coast Highway has likely seen the landmark water tower, a relic of 1890s ingenuity.
The tower recently hit the market again for the third time since its transformation into a house in the 1980s, and this time, it comes with an asking price of $5.5 million.
Within its 2,828 square feet are four bedrooms, four bathrooms and a rotunda-style living area with 360-degree views. Those panoramic coastal to mountain vistas are visible from most rooms in this one-of-a-kind home, which rises above the gated Surfside community.
The living begins at the base of the tower at the foyer, which features a cascading water feature and a wall of tools unearthed in the 1940s that were once used by linesman to repair the tower. These are not the only artifacts or nod to its past used in its design.
In the ground-level guest room, a panel in the wall opens to a staircase that leads to a tiny bedroom nook.
Take the elevator 70-feet up to the elevated living areas, which open to a walk-around deck for unobstructed views, from the ocean to the mountains.
Inside, there’s a well-appointed kitchen with modern amenities and dining area.
Model trains suspended from the ceiling “remind us of why the water tower is here,” Scott Ostlund, a previous co-owner told Architectural Digest in 2019.
A spiral staircase connects the upper levels, including two ensuite bedrooms on the fourth level. One features a rotating water closet and a step-down rainfall shower.
The top-level rotunda is an open-concept space with redwood beams and large picture windows.
A stained-glass cupola crowns the structure, while a compass rose adorns the hardwood floor below.
“Add a laundry room and garage parking to the ever-growing list of perks,” the listing reads.
The tower, built by Southern Pacific Railroad around 1892, originally supplied water to steam engines that traveled along the coast. After a successful “save our water tank” campaign in the early 1980s, the community preserved the structure. It included a 75,000-gallon tank that held water until the 1970s.
In 1984, investors transformed the tower into a home.
Retired South Pasadena Fire Chief Gerald Wallace bought it in 1995 for $800,000. After listing it multiple times for up to $8 million, he sold the property to Ostlund and his investment partner in 2016 for $1.5 million.
After they restored and decorated the tower, they listed it June 2021 for $4.95 million.
The current owner is Orange County historic preservationist and physician Dr. Gregg DeNicola and his wife, Mary. Records show they purchased the water tower house in July 2022 for $4.5 million.
John Simcoe of Keller Williams Realty is the listing agent.