Gavin Herbert, Sr., has put a $75 million price tag on the 5.5-acre estate in San Clemente that once served as President Richard Nixon’s “Western White House”, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Herbert was a transformative chief executive of Allergan Inc., which was founded by his father in 1948 and recently sold for about $72 billion.
Herbert became involved with the property when he was a finance chairman for Nixon’s political operations. He enjoyed gardening—he eventually bought Roger’s Gardens in Newport Beach, which remains in his family’s hands—and volunteered to look after the grounds of the estate on behalf of Nixon.
Herbert later led a partnership that bought the property—which then totaled 26 acres—in 1980 from Nixon for an undisclosed sum. Nixon had bought the land for $1.4 million in 1969.
The partnership later developed part of the acreage into a 14-home neighborhood.
The remaining portion has 15,000 square feet of buildings—including a showcase home—and 450 feet of ocean frontage, the report said.
