Unit 1
Other than the addition of a patio light, the exterior is original. The interior, however, is a modification of the original floor plan more in line with today's expectations. The living room is mostly the same except for the elimination of a door leading to the bedroom. The dining room is roughly the same, but the kitchen has been thoroughly updated to an open design, expanded a bit into the dining room with a peninsula for serving / seating, and a refrigerator which is recessed. This allows for entertaining in the 21st century style rather than the way it was done in the mid-20th century. The kitchen skylight and ceiling exhaust fan are original features and the original fluorescent ceiling light was restored when the kitchen was updated. The biggest change was the addition of a half-bath in what was a hallway behind the kitchen. The bedroom's footprint is mostly original, but it now opens to a thoroughly-modern en suite bathroom. The bathroom retains the original glass block and hopper-style vent window.
Unit 2
With an updated aluminum slider retaining the as-built configuration, the exterior retains the original look, including the door bell button. The interior, however, is a thorough redesign for truly modern living. The living room is roughly the same space except for the elimination of a door leading to the bedroom and the dining room is also almost the same size as the original. The completely transformed chef's kitchen is now an open design, expanded a bit into the dining room with a peninsula for serving / seating, and expanded quite a bit towards the back of the unit. The ovens are raised for easier access and there's a refrigerator which is recessed into custom cabinet work to maximize storage. A drawer-style dishwasher in the peninsula is a clever way to integrate a dishwasher while retaining a large drawer for storage. A new half-bath was added in the core of the unit between the kitchen and bedroom. Wall-hung fixtures maximize the available space. The bedroom is accessed off the living room with a thoroughly-modern en suite bathroom. The primary bathroom retains the original glass block and hopper-style vent window though the space is larger than the original configuration. The wall-hung fixtures in the en suite bathroom make the space feel even bigger.
Unit 3
The exterior is original, including the metal screen for the patio door. The patio door and wall are angled to maintain a view focused on the pool. The characteristic shelf above is parallel to the slider wall, leaving a deeper space above the front door. Inside, the living room is original, even down to the wall clock, though the dining room had a skylight added. The pocket doors leading to the bedroom and kitchen are original and allow the space to be reconfigured with a hidden kitchen as was the style at the time. The kitchen counter and backsplash were replaced, but the cabinetry with bull-nose doors is original, though the one above the range was modified to accommodate a microwave oven. While the lighting has been replaced, the ceiling exhaust fan and skylight are both original. The built-in ironing board is original and still used today. There is plentiful storage in a hall which links the bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom. The bathroom tub, vanity, tile work, wall heater, and windows are original. In the bedroom, the configuration and closets/drawers are mostly original. The small closet lacks the cabinets above because the original ductwork for the swamp cooler runs through the space. While the bedroom wall clock location is original, the mechanism is not.
Unit 4
This is the most original of the one-bedroom units. The exterior is original, even down to the metal screen for the patio door. The patio door and wall are angled to maintain a view focused on the pool. The characteristic shelf above is parallel to the slider wall, leaving a deeper space above the front door. Inside, the living room is original, including the wall clock. In the kitchen, the tile counters and cabinetry are all original, though the addition of a dishwasher and smaller, standard-sized range changes things a bit. A noteworthy detail is that the original kitchen counter has a raised edge to keep spills from overflowing and a slope to direct those spills into the sink. The lighting, ceiling exhaust fan, and skylight are all original. In addition to the many storage options in the kitchen, there is plentiful storage in the hall behind it which links the bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom. The bathroom fluorescent light with adjustable shade, tub, vanity, tile work, wall heater, and windows are all original. In the bedroom, the configuration and closets/drawers are mostly original. The small closet lacks the cabinets above because the original ductwork for the swamp cooler routes through the space.
Unit 5
Patio, Entry, and Bar
This was the private residence of Herbert and Gayle Burns for many years. In addition to being the largest in square footage and the only one with a garage, this unit has a lot of upgrades compared to the other units. Starting with the front patio, it is larger in area and the only one with a terrazzo surface. The patio doors are also the widest and tallest in the entire complex: stretching from floor to ceiling inside. The front door was in the same wall as the massive patio doors but relocated in the 1980s when the bedroom end of the patio was converted to an entry area and a 3/4 bathroom.
Walking into the unit, you can see the original wet bar and original bar fridge with a restored built-in wall clock above. The adjacent wall had a louvered treatment with a faux planter at the base. Looking back at the patio doors, you can see one of several dimmers and an in-ceiling curtain track which allowed every bit of the patio door to be enjoyed when the curtains were opened. Looking back towards the entry, you can see an overhead shelf detail, much-loved by Burns, and the added bathroom.
Living Room and Dining Room
The bookcases along the back are original but they are missing a built-in desk which was attached where there is now a fixed wood panel at a point between the dining and living areas. Some of the lower cabinets have drawers which are deeper than the cabinetry, a trick accomplished by extending them beyond the outer wall. There is no sign of an overhead light so we don’t know exactly how the area was illuminated or where the table was located. Burns used glass block above the built-in bookcases to bring some light into the far side of the room.The end wall is flush with the front edge of the fireplace and is made of a repeating pattern of rough-sawn wood which adds depth and allowed Herbert Burns to add a state-of-the-art entertainment center. There is a large amount of space behind this wooden wall which allowed for built-in storage of equipment, media, and access to the equipment for repairs and upgrades. The fireplace is all original and was built with gas service. The grate near the floor in that area is for one of two subterranean air conditioning returns. The small room off the living room appears to be a later addition and was used as a ham radio room by H. W. Burns himself.
Kitchen and Laundry Room
Heading to the kitchen, a pass-through was opened at some point. We think that the solid wall originally had a pocket door, and the fridge was in the empty space next to the counter. The windows, cabinetry, and counters are original, though some modifications have been made to the cabinetry to accommodate a dishwasher and changes to the cooktop and oven. The countertops flanking the sink have a clever feature. The work surfaces are angled towards the sink. The raised tiles at the edge of the counter keep spills off the floor, and the angled working counter directs any spills or cleaning products down the drain. There is also what appears to be an appliance nook in the corner. On the opposite side of the kitchen, there is a section of shallow counter closest to the dining room. There are provisions for heat lamps under the upper cabinets in this area to keep food warm. The clock built into the upper cabinet appears to be a timer for the nearby outlet. This would allow timed starting and/or stopping of whatever used the timed outlet. Beyond the kitchen is a laundry room with a tile-trimmed laundry sink and a door leading to the outside. Refrigerators have grown so large that this space is the new home for the fridge.
Office
The office retains a pocket door and the display case used by Herbert Burns for his guns and awards. The remaining built-ins are gone, but the acoustic ceiling tiles remain. Apparently the original air conditioning wasn’t up to the task because a wall unit was added early on. File cabinets were added somewhere along the line and they protrude from the exterior quite a bit, but allow for a flush appearance inside.
Bedroom, Bathroom, and Darkroom
The bedroom is very generously sized and features another floor-to-ceiling patio door with recessed curtain track, along with a round recessed light and, of course, an in-wall clock. The bathroom addition turned the patio door into a light well with skylight at the top. The original vanity with mirror was removed at some point. There were also dressers with mirrors which divided the bedroom from the closet and dressing areas. An original electric wall heater is still in place.
The bathroom is the only one in the complex to use beige rather than pink tile and fixtures. It is also the only one with a separate tub and shower, widespread sink faucets, and an in-wall clock. An exhaust fan was placed strategically above the toilet.
Continuing on, there is a darkroom behind the bathroom, another subterranean HVAC return in the floor, and a large bank of closets. The closets were custom designed and featured shirt drawers: opening the two bottom doors reveals many drawers designed for storing folded shirts. Above is a rod for hanging shirts. A door leads from the closet area to the service alley behind the building.
Unit 6
Other than the addition of a patio light and a missing louvered detail at the end of the patio closest to unit 5, the exterior is original, including the doorbell button. This unit is unique because the layout is different even though the 1 bedroom 1 bathroom function is the same as units 1 through 4, the covered patio is larger than those other units, and is the only one with an east-facing view. The living room and bedroom are as-built, including the built-in wall clocks. The kitchen has been thoroughly updated to an open plan design, more in line with today's expectations for living and entertaining. The different layout means that this is the only 1 bedroom 1 bathroom unit built with a kitchen window and the only one with access from the living room to the service alley. The bedroom is as-built with a window facing the courtyard and access to a fully renovated bathroom via the closet area. The bathroom retains the original glass block and hopper-style vent window.
Unit 7
Unit 7 is a major departure in form and function as access is on the street side rather than the courtyard side of the building. This means that the large front patio offers the greatest privacy of any of the units. Stepping inside, a Christopher Kennedy, Inc. design transformed the look and function of the space in 2016. Originally, this was a studio with only a large room facing the street, a small and dark efficiency kitchen, and a bathroom. The current design opens the modern kitchen to the large room. Storage abounds and there is an inside laundry, a rarity at the 400. The bathroom has been thoroughly modernized in the original footprint. The bedroom is not original to the space. A previous owner purchased part of the garage from the then-owner of unit 5. This space was likely used by Herbert Burns for his radio-related hobbies since his call sign K6MQU was featured in the original 12” x 12” tile. It probably had a door to access it from the garage which was replaced with wall and the slider to the courtyard was added, turning what was a studio into a 1 bedroom unit.
Unit 8
Patio, Living/Dining, and Kitchen
The approach leads to a large covered patio for the only unit at the 400 designed and built by Herbert Burns to have two bedrooms. It’s also the only original patio door which features a single fixed panel and a single operable panel to join the patio with the living room. To the left of the patio there is a cleverly-hidden access door which leads to the water heaters for one of the bathrooms in unit 8 and the entirety of unit 9.
Once inside, there is an entry area large enough for a tiki bar and a spacious combined living and dining room. This room features the only shelf detail which runs across two walls with a graceful curve where they meet. This is also the only use of a large rectangular glass block window in living space rather than a bathroom. The kitchen is original with the exception of the refrigerator and boasts a large footprint, direct access to the front of the building, and a window.
Bedrooms and Bathrooms
Moving on to the bedrooms and bathrooms, there is a bit of history to explain. While initially built with two bedrooms and one bathroom, it was modified by Herbert Burns to add a full second bathroom before the complex was converted from rental apartments to private ownership. The biggest bedroom change was made to the courtyard-facing bedroom, which had the window moved from facing east towards the pool to facing north toward the courtyard. The additional bathroom, accessed from the hall, is still pink but with some differences in details and fixtures because it was added later. It has original fixtures and a skylight for daylighting plus an exhaust fan for ventilation. While it could have had a street-facing window, Burns left the new front wall uninterrupted with dark, irregular stone, which contrasts with the pre-addition stonework elsewhere.
The street-facing bedroom, with high windows for privacy, is still the original configuration as is the en suite bathroom. The bathroom even retains the original faucets, still working nearly 70 years later! This bathroom is the only original bathroom with a casement window instead of the hopper-style window set in glass block.
Unit 9
This studio occupies the remainder of the Burns addition which includes the second bathroom for unit 8. This unit originally had a narrow entry door, like the kitchen door for unit 8 and a large window with two fixed sliding panels and two operable panels which met in the middle. The window was raised around a foot off the ground, giving it the appearance of a small version of the slider for unit 5 but with a high step-over. The narrow door and large window were converted to the large slider around 2012. During this change, the main room lost the shelf detail which ran above the old door and window. This remodel also opened the kitchen to the main room. The kitchen lost a pocket door, built-in ironing board, and a built-in wall clock above the pocket door but the change made the entire space feel larger. The closet was enlarged during this project, so that storage space was increased and a laundry area was added. The door to the bathroom was changed from a solid door to one with a frosted panel to allow daylight from the bathroom skylight to illuminate the closet and laundry. The bathroom tile, vanity cabinet, sink, tub, and wall heater are all original. The faucet is in keeping with the time period and the toilet is modern but in a matching pink.
Landscape, Pool, and Fire Pit
Approaching the property from the street, it is hard to miss our palm trees. While there have been several changes to the grounds over the years, the two tall palms out front are original to the site. We don’t know if the shorter one was an intentional addition or a volunteer, but it makes for a nice grouping.
When the Four Hundred was built, there were no sidewalks on our side of West Arenas, and nothing to block access the from the street and neighboring Town & Desert, which is now The Hideaway. Since that time, insurance requirements and government safety regulations forced securing the pool area, so over time fence was added. In 2021, the white stucco wall which faces the street and front walk was added to recapture otherwise wasted space and convert the front landscape along the new wall from turf to drought-tolerant desert plants. At that time we planted more bougainvillea to add continuity with others others along West Arenas.
Once through the gate you can see our unusually-shaped pool directly in front of you. Not quite the kidney-bean many expect, it also sports a wedge or shark-fin shape which protrudes inward. While the pool got new plumbing, plaster, and tile in 2018, the shell of the pool is as it was originally designed.
If you look to your right, you’ll see our fire pit in what was previously a space covered by turf. The fire pit was installed in 2022 as a way to continue community happy hours and get-togethers during the colder months. The in-ground design was inspired by The Hideaway next door and it serves the community well.
Continuing into the courtyard, you can see several drought-tolerant garden areas in what was once almost exclusively turf. Looking to the west across the main lawn area, the mountains provide a beautiful backdrop. People do use the turf since it stays cooler than concrete, though we are examining ways to reduce it further as state mandates change.
At the far end of the courtyard you can see one of the many wall clocks Herbert Burns built into the property. The courtyard clock is handy when you’re lounging in the pool.
In a planter near the pool, you can see what looks like a new cactus, but these cactus limbs were part our original cactus. The summer of 2024 nearly killed the entire plant so we had no choice but to remove it, save a few limbs and re-plant them in the same location. A little over 70 years after being planted, this original cactus lives on! The historic picture, below, shows the cactus around 70 years ago. This is a portion of a photograph by Julius Shulman, noted architectural photographer. We are lucky to have historic pictures, now Copyright The J. Paul Getty Trust. The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles.
