In the late 1990s, around the same time a severe knee injury snapped his incredible streak of 189 consecutive regular-season games played, Jerry Rice put down permanent roots in the Bay Area. He engaged Lencioni Construction to custom-build an extravagant French chateau-inspired estate on 1.24 acres in the affluent enclave of Atherton. It was finalized in 2001, the same year the legendary wide receiver left the San Francisco 49ers after 16 seasons to sign with the Oakland Raiders.
The NFL Hall of Famer and three-time Super Bowl champ listed the property in 2007 for $22 million. After a nearly $9 million price cut a year later, it floated on and off the market until 2011. That’s when it almost traded hands for $11 million, only for the buyer to back out at the last minute. He lowered his ask to $10.5 million in late 2012, before ultimately selling to the cofounders of the Sand Hill Property Company, philanthropists Peter and Susanna Pau, early the next year at a deeply discounted $9 million.
A fireside living room has a soaring vaulted ceiling and massive arched window framing lush greenery.
Jeffrey Frisk
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The roughly 12,500-square-foot spread has now returned to the market for $35 million, complete with a $500,000 professional-grade gym that still includes Rice’s weights and training equipment, plus an adjacent recovery suite with a steam shower and sauna. Pierre and Alex Buljan of Compass and Ken DeLeon of DeLeon Realty share the listing.
Beyond its athletic spaces, the six-bedroom, 11-bathroom abode is decked out with Versace limestone floors, Swarovski crystal accents, Venetian plaster walls, soaring ceilings, French doors and windows, and an elevator servicing all three levels. Tailored for grand-scale leisure and entertainment, a double-height, skylit entry foyer boasting a sweeping artisan ironwork staircase leads to formal living and dining rooms. Nearby, a family room abuts an updated kitchen featuring eucalyptus cabinetry, premium appliances, and a curving, glass-lined breakfast nook.
A $500,000, professional-grade gym still contains Rice’s original weights and training equipment.
Jeffrey Frisk
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Elsewhere is a mahogany-paneled study and a spacious primary retreat flaunting dual dressing rooms and a private fireside lounge with a coffee/cocktail bar. Other posh perks encompass an Art Deco-inspired movie theater with gold-flecked carpeting and a concession stand, alongside a crafting room and a recreation room with a climatized wine alcove that can accommodate more than 1,000 bottles.
Created by the landscape architect who envisioned San Jose’s popular Santana Row shopping and dining district, succulent gardens and redwood trees wrap a 25-yard lap pool, a putting green, an outdoor kitchen, and a stone fireplace and alfresco dining area beneath a vine-laced pergola. There’s also an indoor-outdoor dog run, as well as a detached guesthouse with its own kitchen and bath and a seven-car garage sporting a Tesla charging station.
Click here for the more photos of the Atherton residence.
Jeffrey Frisk
Authors
Wendy Bowman
