Real Estate News
by Mary K. Mewborn

Alan S. Murray and his wife LoriEsposito Murray, have purchased 5018 Eskridge TerraceN.W. for $1.75 million. Alan Murrayis the Wall Street Journal's Washingtonbureau chief and moderator of CNBC's"Capital Report." Lori served as seniorlegislative assistant to former SenatorNancy Landon Kassebaum (R-Kansas)for several years before being tapped byPresident Clinton as his special advisoron the Chemical Weapons Convention.Prior to purchasing their new homein the Palisades neighborhood of theDistrict, the Murrays and their twochildren lived in Bethesda, Maryland.They bought their new home nearBattery Kemble Park from Michael H.and Mirra Dersookian who reportedlyspent $200,000 up-grading the propertyover the course of the last two years.

U.S. Ambassador to Denmark StuartBernstein and his wife Wilma havereportedly purchased 2435 KaloramaRoad N.W., next door to the IcelandicEmbassy residence, for $3,537,000.Stuart Bernstein is a longtime realestate developer and GOP fund-raiser.Wilma Bernstein is the sister of MelEstrin, also a successful real estate investor. Readers may recall that in 2001 onthe eve of their move to Copenhagen,the Bernsteins sold their huge $5.5million Washington Harbour penthouse to Secretary of the Army ThomasE. White, a former CEO of EnronOperations Corporation. They boughttheir new property from Richard E.Thompson, chairman of ThompsonPublishing Group,Inc., and the president and founder of Charter SchoolsDevelopment Corporation.

Alexandra “Chi-Chi” Warner Nash and her husband Peter B. Nash bought5070 Millwood Lane N.W. from RuthH. Carr for $1,375,000. Peter Nashworks for Chi-Chi’s brother-in-law JoeyKempfer, a big time D.C. developerand owner of many downtown buildings. Statuesque blonde Chi-Chi is thedaughter of William W. Warner, whowon a Pulitzer in 1977 for “BeautifulSwimmers,” a book about the naturalwonders of the Chesapeake Bay. The Nashes recently returned from Londonwhere they had been residing for several years. Now ensconced in D.C.’sKent neighborhood, they are expectedto be quite comfortable in their newlypurchased four-level French Colonialwith six bedrooms, five full baths, threehalf baths, two dining rooms, four fireplaces and a fifty-foot deck overlookinga pool and Jacuzzi. The elegant homewas built in 1941 and had been listed for$2,865,000 or almost $1.5 million more than the Nashes ultimately paid.

601 Deerfield Pond Court Bruno Freschi the internationally acclaimed Canadian-born architectwho transformed Vancouver with his designs for the 1986 World Exposition,will soon put his talents to use in FoggyBottom. By press time, Freschi and hiswife Vaune Ainsworth will have bought925 26th Street, N.W. from LawrenceImpett for approximately $1,175,000.Freschi came to Washington withCannon Design following his tenure asdean of the School of Architecture at theState University of New York at Buffaloand is expected to revamp the contemporary-style townhouse for use as hisfamily residence. The home is locatedon the former site of the MorningstarBaptist Church, one of eleven originalchurches around which Foggy Bottom’sresidential community revolved in the1950’s. Although some in Washingtonbelieve that “Foggy Bottom” is a reference to the murky thought pattern ofvarious public officials, or a descriptionof the layer upon layer of bureaucracythat epitomizes the Federal Government,the name is actually much more literal.It dates back to the neighborhood’s earlynineteenth century origin as an industrial center with a reputation for beinga low, swampy area where fogs rolledin off the Potomac and mixed withsmog from the local Washington Gasand Light Company. Today of courseFoggy Bottom is better known as hometo the State Department, the KennedyCenter, the Watergate complex, GeorgeWashington University, and now BrunoFreschi. In addition to his work inCanada for which he was awardedThe Order of Canada, thatnation’s highest civilian honor,Freschi has also left his markon China, Israel and Turkey.Washington Fine Properties’agent Ted Gossett was instrumental in facilitating the purchase ofthe Freschis’ new Foggy Bottomabode which has five bedrooms,three bathrooms, a garage, and overlooks a park. Ted Gossett also has thetransfer of 1324 Q Street N.W.wrapped up. The renovated luxury two-story loft-style penthousecondominium features 9,000 square-feet of living space and alarge balcony. The property which is inthe Logan Circle neighborhood or whatrealtors now commonly like to refer to as“Dupont East,” is believed to have beenowned by Brian Powe and John Zionand was sold through 1324 Q StreetLimited Partnership. Ted Gossettlisted the property for $1,045,000 andalso served as the selling agent. The buyers who paid $1,020,000, are JenniferBaxter M.D., a pediatric anesthesiologist, and Naomi O’Grady M.D., thesenior investigator for the Division of Critical Care Medicine at NIH. Last October, Washington Life reported that Douglas Johnson andBrett Copeland would purchase 1918 17th Street, N.W. at the corner of 17thand Willard. Now it has been learnedthat the men are about to begin "fairlymajor facade renovation" on their 6,000square-foot century-old single family dwelling. The Victorian home wasdesigned by its first owner, FerdinandSchneider, a relative of famed architect Thomas Franklin Schneider, andis one of the few houses in the FederalCity area of Dupont Circle which hasretained its original configuration andfloor plan throughout its hundred yearhistory. The blueprints for the residenceare on file at the National Archives andJohnson tells WL that although "interior renovations are ongoing," he andhis partner will maintain "all the original woodwork, speaking tubes, callbuttons, etc.” The purchase price for the historic home was just underone million dollars. How expensive an endeavor the exterior renovationwill be, waits to be seen. In Georgetown's East Village, Roger Ballentine and his wifeJennifer Loven have sold their quaint two bedroom semi-detached Federal house at 134629th Street, N.W. The buyers whowere represented by Trudi Musson,an agent with Sarah Gorman RealEstate, paid $501,000 for the cozy,freshly painted home featuringhardwood floors, a wood burningstove, an updated kitchen, and aquaint stone-walled garden withflowering shrubs and a fountain.The Ballentines were assisted in theirsale by Coldwell Banker/Pardoe realtorNancy Taylor Bubes, who was recentlyrecognized as number two among4400 agents in Coldwell Banker'sMid-Atlantic Brokerage as well asnumber two individual agent by theGreater Capitol Association of Realtors(GCAAR). Roger Ballentine is president of Green Strategies, a consultingfirm specializing in energy and environmental issues, and was previouslydeputy assistant to President Clinton forenvironmental initiatives and chairmanof the White House Climate ChangeTask Force. He also sits on the boardof directors of Solar Electric Light Fund(SELF)along with actors Ed Begley, Jr.and Larry Hagman. Jennifer Loven is areporter for the Associated Press. 1346 29th Street N.W. Maryland Following the sale of their Georgetownhome, Roger Ballentine and JenniferLoven again chose Nancy Taylor Bubesto represent them. Thanks to Bubes’ skillas a selling agent the Ballentines nowreside in in what can only be describedas a Chevy Chase classic, complete with afront porch swing, a beautiful yard and awhite picket fence. The charming househas an updated kitchen, three bedroomsand a finished basement. The Ballentinespurchased the property at 3625 RaymondStreet for $735,000 from Jen Robertiand Robert Naddelman who were represented by Muffin Lynham of W.C. & A.N. Miller. Elsewhere in Chevy Chase, Long & Foster's Nancy Itteilag and BarbaraHoy have been reselling units at 5630Wisconsin Avenue in the Parc Somerset'snewest building at a record pace. A 10thfloor C Model unit featuring two bedrooms, a formal library, a gourmetkitchen, high ceilings, a gas fireplace andtwo balconies with spectacular views,went for $1,595,000 within a week ofcoming on the market. Although thelucky new owners wish to remain anonymous, they are apparently delighted withtheir beautifully appointed 2400-squarefoot home complete with such specialfinishes as Gracie wallpaper, silk draperies and elegant Stark carpets. Nancy Itteilag and Barbara Hoy alsolisted and sold a 5th floor condominiumoverlooking the treetops in the ParcSomerset's newest building. The unithas double balconies and the same interior design as the 10th floor C Modelbut with a somewhat more contemporary decor. The buyers who again purchased theproperty within a week of its being listed, willingly paid $1,550,000to live in one of the area's most soughtafter luxury high-rises. Although thenew owners of this unit have also askedto remain anonymous, according to Ms.Itteilag, the Parc Somerset "is especiallypopular with empty nesters coming outof large Potomac/Bethesda homes" seton two or more acres. Among the ParcSomerset's many notable amenities is itstwenty-four hour concierge service. Virginia Souheil Hajjar chief of the InternationalDevelopment Bank’s InvestmentsSection is rumored to be parting with hisproperty at 1588 Carlin Lane in McLeanand is expected to reap in excess of onemillion dollars for the home. While theproperty is currently under contract, nosettlement date had been set. Crest Lane has traditionally beenMcLean’s most prestigious street inlarge part because Jacqueline BouvierKennedy Onassis grew up in the sameChain Bridge Road neighborhood atMerrywood, the house where JFK wroteProfiles in Courage. But what makes1159 Crest Lane so special that the selleris asking $11.5 million? Granted theunique elliptical house set on 2.4 acrescommands beautiful views of the riverfrom every room. And the fact that it isrumored to have been rented by Jordan’sQueen Noor also accounts for some ofthe property ’s perceived value. Built in1999, the multi-million dollar home isdescribed as having “understated elegance,” not unlike Noor herself. Theseller, listed as Margaret Skallrup,Trustee, originally placed the home onthe market with an asking price of $15million. Consequently, interested buyersmay hold out some hope that the pricewill fall yet again. 6303 Hunting Ridge Lane In Great Falls, Weichert’s Penny Yerksassisted in the sale of 601 Deerfield PondCourt to new owners Neil and ChantalSelvin who moved from San Franciscowhere Neil Selvin was chairman and CEO of Pivia, Inc. of Cupertino,which sells caching software andservices. The property was mostrecently the residence of JohnMotley of John Motley Associatesand was apparently sold in trustby Crowning Shield Trust J.Coleman and Lois M. BeanThe majestic brick Colonial boastsseven bedrooms, eight full baths,six fireplaces and sits on five acreswith a tennis court and swimmingpool. The estate also features asun deck, circular drive and twoseparate two-car garages. TheSelvins went to settlement on the21st of April paying approximately$2.8 million for the home built in1987 on a winding private lane inthe John H. Haines subdivision.Weichert’s Sue Huckaby, who ultimatelyserved as the selling agent in this transaction, had originally listed the propertyalmost exactly a year ago. The propertywas last sold in 1999 for $1,950,000. Sue Huckaby also listed the four-bed-room brick Colonial at 6303 HuntingRidge Lane in McLean for Davidand Pamela McCurdy, who received$832,000 from buyers Charles andAnne Sellon. Highlights of the HuntingHill property include a swimming pooland spa framed by a gorgeous patio. Thehouse has a huge kitchen pantry, a brightbreakfast room with bay windows, alibrary with built-in shelves, cathedralceilings in the family room and a wetbar in the recreation room. Middleburg Associates has sold anewly completed house at 510 ArnonLake Drive in Great Falls to Nick andhis wife, Kathleen Karelis a lawyerwith Miller & Chevalier. Weichert'sSue Huckaby listed the four-bedroomresidence with four and two half bathsfor the builder Bob Moesle at the endof last year. It sold at the end of Marchof this year for $1,835,000 or $35,000more than the original asking price.Highlights include ten-foot ceilings onthe main level, a master bedroom suitewith a large sitting area and fireplace,a media room, an au pair suite, and athree-car garage. Please Send Real Estate Information to Mary_Mewborn@Yahoo.com