Andy Beal Closed on the Hicks Residence This Morning: The Most Expensive Real Estate Transaction in Texas Real Estate History

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We’ve been blogging about it for weeks now, and I have to give credit where credit is due: Steve Brown at The Dallas Morning News was first to publish that Andy Beal was interested in buying Walnut Place, the former Crespi Estate on Walnut Hill Lane that was listed by Allie Beth Allman and David Nichols for $100 million. I had heard Beal was going back and forth between Walnut Place and the beautiful Crow mansion at 4500 Preston Road. We know the Hicks are getting close to finding a new home in Dallas, and Allie Beth Allman tells me the 35,275-square-foot (67,689 including terraces) estate closed officially this morning when papers were signed. And Beal paid for the home in cash. She will not disclose the sales price, nor comment on my incessant questions about the Crow estate or sales price, but she did tell me that Andy Beal bought all of the estate, all 25.25 acres, and he plans to keep it intact.

“He doesn’t plan to split it,” she told me.

Bravo Andy Beal!

Allie Beth Allman is an amazing agent, and I had to ask her, how does she feel after pulling off the largest sale in Texas history — actually, in Texas and Oklahoma and probably in the whole southwest U.S. history?

“I don’t feel any different,” she said. “I went to back to work immediately. I had an agent calling me during the closing about another property.”

And while she could not divulge what the final selling price was, she did say that both parties were thrilled.

“The Hicks are thrilled, the buyers are thrilled,” said Allie Beth. “And you know I’m not happy if it’s not that way at every single closing, regardless of the sales price. We are talking about someone’s home and they should not just be happy but be thrilled with the entire process.”

If they are not, she says, then I haven’t done my job. And Allie Beth Allman ALWAYS does her job.

As for the Crow estate, she has a listing agreement and it is on the market and available for $46 million.  It was off the market for the holidays, she told me.

I have to laugh at those who said, and some who actually wrote, that this estate would never sell. It took David and Allie Beth only 9 months to sell a $100 million property.

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Until the Waggoner Ranch closes, this is the largest real estate sale in Texas history, and certainly will be the largest in Dallas history for years to come. The last largest sale in Dallas history was 5323 Park Lane, when Kelcy Warren bought the nine plus acre estate of Joyce and Larry Lacerte, designed and built by Cole Smith, decorated by Sherry Hayslip, and listed with Ralph Randall at Ebby Halliday. 5323 Park Lane was originally listed in 2008 for $45 million, then lowered to just under $40 million as the nation’s real estate bubble went bust. According to my sources, it sold for about $29 million-ish, and sharp Kelsey even asked for an outside appraisal. His buyer’s agent was Rosie Waters of Allie Beth Allman and Associates, who is married to football legend Charlie Waters, who works (or worked at the time) for Mr. Warren.

Dallas real estate — I LOVE IT! Jump for the story on Walnut Place, complete with photos, that we ran back in March of this year.Hicks Main House- Foyer and Grand Stairway

It is almost impossible to describe what it feels like to actually visit Walnut Place, the former Crespi Estate, as it was christened by owners Thomas O. and Cinda Hicks. But we were fortunate indeed to tour the 35,275 square foot (67,689 including terraces) estate for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The most expensive home in Dallas is now on the market with both Allie Beth Allman and David Nichols of the brokerage bearing Allie Beth’s name. The home had previously been marketed by Doug Newby, who’s methodology had been to keep it highly exclusive and restrictive — few Dallas area agents were actually ever inside the home. That could be because Doug thought the buyer would come from outside of Dallas. He did have the estate plastered on every private jet publication out there. Until now, it has not been in the MLS.

Last Thursday, the extraordinary Preston Hollow estate was opened to the agents of Allie Beth Allman to tour for the very first time. Everyone was absolutely breathless. The drive-up as you turn into the graceful private gates at 10000 Hollow Way is more like driving through the French countryside to a fabulous chateaux deep in the heart of the forest. You are on 25.25 acres but you are seconds from the Dallas North Tollway entrance and about a seven minute drive to downtown Dallas with minimum traffic. Office in Preston Center and you could even walk –it’s 4 miles!

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The drive splits, forking to the right and left. The two circles culminate in the entrance to the crushed limestone auto courtyard. It is here the original Crespi Estate, designed by Maurice Fatio, was situated on the rambling acreage for the best possible siting: the drive pulls you into another world of pastoral escape, all of which is viewable from the estate. The estate overlooks a forest of trees and a creek which runs through the property. There are meadows and trails, a year-round pond, a helipad with a lighted landing pad that is covered with grass when not in use to maintain the natural aesthetic. There are two courtyards lined with 16 magnolia trees each, a greenhouse, formal rose garden, lighted tennis court, and a 1500 foot deep well was drilled on the property and that water is then purified to water the estate grounds.

You enter the estate though an ornamental steel front door. You will enter into the original Crespi estate that was built in 1938. The addition, completed by John Sebastian, flows completely seamlessly from the original mansion to the new. I’m told the Hicks did not just add more limestone to their exterior renovation, they went to the actual quarry in Indiana that had supplied the original limestone back in the 1930’s. They re-opened it and excavated stone from the same terra for the absolute utmost chance of a perfect match. Stones, as you know, can be like fabrics and no two are ever 100% alike. A Corian technique of light sandblasting was used to match the new Indiana limestone to the old original, perhaps remove the “newness”.

The home is amazingly balanced and perfectly symmetrical. It begins with the marble floored gallery hall running the girth of the main house.

Walk in to the right and there is the formal dining room, generously sized, but not overpoweringly so. The Oak Chevron patterned floors have a dark ebony finish and were imported from France. In this room is a most amazing juxtaposition of contemporary art to a classically traditional home. The dining table is large, but there is room enough for a cozy secondary table. The walls are lacquer with a high-glossed finish with ornamental plaster accents.

Hicks Grounds- Rear Garden Looking North

A word about the renovation. The Hicks bought the estate in 1997 and gave Mrs. Crespi a life estate on the property, but work on the home did begin. (We will have more posts from Nancy Smith, who recalls countless parties at the Crespi Estate prior to the sale.) The renovation took place from 2000 to 2003 – 33 months to complete. At times there were 250 people per day working on the estate. The detail of the work is unbelievable — the dentils in the intricate, hand-carved ceiling moldings, the 30 coats of automotive lacquer paint on the chocolate-colored walls of the back corridors, the classic gracefulness everywhere.

This wing holds the Breakfast Room, floored with imported French wood in an intricate pattern. The kitchen is also surprisingly cozy for a home of this magnitude. But it is as efficient as the finest commercial gourmet kitchen. There are antique French terra cotta floors, backsplash tiles of 17th century manganese purchased at auction over a period of three years, two sinks, four ovens, a ten-foot long La Corneu Diva range stove that runs about $65,000 with commercial grade fans, and European tile backsplash. The kitchen cabinet millwork is flawless and the finish is glazed. There is linen behind the glass door cabinets. From the tiles, there is imported European limestone in the hallway leading from the kitchen to the Conservatory.

The Conservatory was added new during the renovation. It has marble floors and limestone fireplace mantels, and those floors are heated by running hot water tubes imbedded below the marble.

Adjacent to the kitchen is the breakfast room and the Butlery, another well-sized room with a center dining table, more counters matching the kitchen finishes, another sink and commercial refrigeration. The antique floors in this room are from France, and the walls and ceilings are hand-stenciled. This room is for more cozy, casual dining, or for children and nannies.

The family room is also warm and beckoning, with dark ebony finish floors on wide oak, stenciled raffia walls and concealed doors near the entrance. Those perfectly recessed doors are but one example of the detailed, man-made perfection that has gone into this home and is evident in every room.

Hicks Grounds- Pond at Entry Area

The library, half of which was in the original estate, has paneling dating back to 1820 that was imported from France. The room is one of Marino’s crowning glories. The ventilation grilles in the entire home are custom, and happen to be bronze, as is the detail on the fireplace. The famous green and silver bar is completely original from the Crespi Estate, but the walls have been newly silver-leafed.

The living room is entirely new, very spacious. This was where the Hicks hosted an event for former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani years ago, when he considered a run for the White House. It is floored in antique hardwoods imported from France with walls that are two feet deep in thickness. The living room overlooks a wooded courtyard with an elegant fountain. An original parlor was taken down to the studs and turned into a private office for Mr. Hicks with double televisions built right to the metal frames of the walls.

The first floor contains a butler’s pantry, a full laundry, a flower room, loggia and the two garages.There are a total of eight garage spaces, seven are usable (the eighth space is more of a motorcycle bay). There is also a woodshop.

The crowning glory of the second floor is the 3,000 square foot master bedroom wing with entry vestibule, and the Crespi Estate ribbon design on the doors. The master bedroom has an antique fireplace surrounded by slate, and separate his and her bathrooms as well as dressing rooms. The lady’s bath resplendent with Sherle Wagner, the gentleman’s bath with the most beautiful book-matched marble. There are two dressing areas each for the lady and gentleman of the house — “her’s” has mercury glass panels and pleated fabric closet doors to protect clothing, plus a personal lady’s study with an antique honed cut marble fireplace. His has a “Spogliatoio” — that is, a combo formal dressing/casual sports room for men made of Honduran mahogany paneling hand-waxed in French polish. The master also has a sitting area and a terrace.

Hicks Grounds- Lawn by Pond

The second floor contains four more en suite bedrooms and baths, each with dressing rooms, and another laundry room.

The third floor holds an exercise room, a massage room and bath with steam shower, two more en suite bedrooms, a trophy room, and three terraces.

The basement level contains several maintenance and storage rooms that run below the house and motor court. There is a wet-bar, a movie theater (not to be confused with the nearly full-sized theater in the Recreation Complex), a mechanical room, a 500 bottle capacity wine storage room kept at a constant 55 degree threshold with alarm if the temperature veers warmer or colder and a case wine storage room. There is also a two-story, two bedroom staff wing (Staff Wing One) with sitting, security, separate laundry room and a large common room with a kitchen. Then another staff wing (Staff Wing Two), with a bedroom and common area with a kitchen

There are a few ancillary buildings on the estate, of course. The most prominent is the Recreational complex which holds a 24 by 47 foot great room with massive beams — the ceiling was fabricated in Austin, the floors are pure Texas limestone, and the commercial industrial kitchen is of stainless steel. Because this complex is where the pool and spa are located, there are both men’s and women’s changing rooms with lockers and showers. The pool is 25 x 35 feet long, making it country club sized. The Recreation Complex also holds a guest bedroom and bath upstairs. The cinema is on the lower level and is seriously about the size of the theater at Highland Park Village — at 25 by 36 feet it holds 19 seats, has a reel projection room and concession counter for candy and popcorn. Framed jerseys hang on the walls, a reminder of when Hicks owned the Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars, the Mesquite Championship Rodeo and the Liverpool F.C. There is another changing room down here as well as a laundry room. The beauty of the location is that the soundtrack can be as loud as a sonic boom and no one will hear it unless they are actually in the theater. The Recreational Complex has a total of three full bathrooms and two half baths.

Hicks Guest House- View from Master Bedroom Balcony (Facing Northwest)

The guest house can also serve as a “business house” or complex. Or it can comfortably house guests! It has a living room, formal dining room, a secretary support room/office, full kitchen and loggia. The second story has two bedrooms with huge full baths crafted of rare granites and marbles, patterns perfectly matched, dressing rooms, and storage.

There is a family house located near the second gated entrance to the property with four bedrooms, four full baths and one half bath, kitchen and bar, a nearby one bedroom apartment above the two car garage.

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Hicks Main Grounds- Area Behind House on North Side

Hicks Main House-Rear Garden on North Side

As we have said, the restoration of the Crespi Estate was long, arduous and painstaking. The original idea started on a napkin sketch followed by thee years of planning after the home was purchased August 15, 1997. Experts were flown in from around the globe for consultation and execution of the work. The outside frame, center corridors and front staircase in the front of the house are all original from the Crespi Estate and were designed by famed Swiss architect Maurice Fatio, originally built in 1938.
The remainder of the house and complexes were designed and built from the ground up under the guidance of New York based architect and interior designer, Peter Marino. Dallas builder John Sebastian was the contractor and the rebuild took more than 250 people at times to work 7 days a week, three project managers and five superintendents, one for each floor. All masons were commercial, four specialty artists were flown in from New York City and France. Local painters J.C. Martin, Phillip Minton and Tim Baxter plus a team of artisans from France completed the extensive paint finishes. Lighting design was done by Craig Roberts and the Hicks brought in London-based garden designer Arabella Lennox-Boyd as head landscape architect, with Warren Johnson as the contributing architect.

The features are yet another example of the details that make this estate so incredibly special. The doors and windows are all American-made Zeluck windows made of rot-free mahogany wood or metal from Crittall all with UV protection on glass. All the fireplaces have a sophisticated motor system to guarantee that each draws perfectly created by an Oregon specialist, the main house has a commercial elevator that access all three floors and the basements, indoor and outdoor lighting systems are by Lutron and the home was carefully sound engineered: acoustic experts suspended the ceilings so noise could not slip between floors, all mechanical equipment is isolated to mask any possible noise, and all speakers throughout the house are hidden by plastic veneer. You can hear the music but never see from whence it comes.

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The home has commercial-grade air conditioning with a four-pipe system, a cooling tower, every A/C grill custom crafted and 35 air handlers. There is a full house generator that would last about 10 to 12 hours. There is a full state of the art security system. The home is also fully fire-sprinkle red with concealed heads on all the 14-foot ceilings.

The sales price is $100 million. It is the most expensive home for sale in Dallas and among the most expensive in the nation. I asked Allie Beth and David two things we all want to know: is any of the artwork for sale and where are the Hicks planning to go?

The art is definitely not for sale, I’m told.

“The Hicks children are grown and have their own homes,” says Allie Beth Allman. “They also spend time at their home in La Jolla but will always maintain a residence in Dallas.”

 

Photos of the Main House interiors:Hicks Main House- Foyer and Grand Stairway

Hicks Main House- Entry Hall (Facing West)

Hicks Main House- Living Room (Facing North)

Hicks Main House- Living Room- Facing South

Hicks Main House- Living Room- Fireplace

Hicks Main House- Dining Room (Facing North)

Hicks Main House- Dining Room (Facing East)

Hicks Main House- Entry to Grand Stairway

Hicks Main House- Bar (1)

Hicks Main House- Kitchen

 

 

Hicks Main House- Kitchen (2).jpg stove

Hicks Main House- Morning Room (Facing Southeast)

Hicks Main House- Conservatory (Facing North)

Hicks Main House- Office

Hicks Main House- Fireplace in Office

Hicks Main House- Library (Facing North)

Hicks Main House- Library (Facing East) (1)

Hicks Main House- Master Bedroom (Facing Northeast) (1)

hicks Main House- Master Bedroom- Fireplace

Hicks estate her bath

Hicks Main House- His bath in Master Suite

Hicks Main House- Her Sitting Area in Master Suite

Hicks Main House- Her Closet Master Suite

Hicks Main House- His Closet in Master Suite

Hicks Main House- Fitness Room

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Hicks Main House- Garage (From West)

 

Photos of the Guest House interiors:Hicks Guest House-Entry

Hicks Guest House-Hallway

Hicks Guest House-Kitchen

Hicks Guest House-Living Room

Hicks Guest House-Sitting Room

Hicks Guest House-Dining Room

Hicks Guest House-Bedroom

Hicks Guest House-Bathroom

hicks Guest House Bedroom (1)

hicks Guest House Bathroom

 

 

 

Photos of the Recreation Complex:Hicks 10000HollowWay199L rec complex main

Hicks media theater 10000HollowWay250L

Hicks Rec Ctr-Movie Theatre

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hicks rec House Kitchen

Hicks Grounds- Pool looking North

 

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Candy Evans, founder and publisher of CandysDirt.com, is one of the nation’s leading real estate reporters.

3 Comments

  1. Margaret Manser on January 15, 2016 at 9:37 pm

    It’s a glorious house. Hats off to all concerned.

  2. Barbara Gilbert on January 16, 2016 at 7:54 am

    Candy, thank you for sharing this amazing estate. While looking at the photos I felt like I was strolling the property and walking through the house!

  3. peter on December 13, 2019 at 5:20 pm

    This is a magnificent home! love this site! boo yah

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