Life is estate of mine.

Life is estate of mine

The pace was frenetic last week in the mountains above Beverly Hills, as workers hurried to put the finishing touches on the site of Brian Adler's extravagant "coming out" party for North Beverly Park.

Hundreds of prominent Westside real estate brokers and agents were on their way to get a close-up and personal look at Adler's 225-acre project, and things had to be just so when they arrived.

After all, Adler is pitching his North Beverly Park project as the most exclusive residential enclave in the nation; although it presently consists of little more than some landscaped streets winding through 64 graded plots of dirt.

"I stayed up to midnight last night with electricians, fixing the lights in all the trees so guests can see the topiary animals," Adler says excitedly. "The waterfall is going. People will come away from this event bubbling with enthusiasm - nothing like this has ever been done before."

Well, almost nothing like it.

Adler and a group of his associates in the mid-1980s developed South Beverly Park on 100 acres of adjacent land. That guard-gated community now contains 16 of the Westside's most lavish estates, each of which is worth at least $8 million.

The list of South Beverly Park residents reads like a who's who of L.A. luminaries: multimillionaire Meshulam Riklis and his entertainer wife Pia Zadora, mega-investor Derek Dawson, and Warner Bros.' president of overseas TV distribution Michael Solomon, to name a few.

Adler and his family live there, too, in a 12,500-square-foot manse sandwiched between the estates of Laker's star Earvin "Magic" Johnson and that of Columbia Pictures' co-chairman Jon Peters.

"Jon Peters told me he wouldn't move away from here even if he made another $2 billion," Adler crows.

Peters confirmed those sentiments last week.

"Look, I never talk to the press," sniffs the studio chief. "But Beverly Park is the most beautiful place. I've lived in Bel-Air and all over Los Angeles, but I've never lived in a more creative, exciting community than Beverly Park. It's clean and secure, and everybody is very loving to each other. I love it, and it has nothing to do with the amount of money I have."

Well, almost nothing.

Adler is asking between $3.4 million and $5.4 million for empty lots at North Beverly Park. The lots' average size is about two acres, twice the size of South Beverly Park plots.

"True estate lots are an acre-and-a-half, or larger," Adler explains. "And there are only 68 lots currently fitting that description in Holmby Hills, Bel-Air and Beverly Hills, combined. So with North Beverly Park we are nearly doubling the number of Westside estates."

While last week's "coming out" party marked the official launch of North Beverly Park's marketing program, Adler says he has already sold about half of the 64 lots.

"We have 15 sets of architectural plans already in place," he says. "One is for a 30,000-square-foot home."

Adler is apparently feeling confident about his project's early success.

He, in fact, has already staked out a prime plot for himself in North Beverly Park, where he plans to build an 18,000-square-foot house for his family.

Adler's partner, Marshall Ezralow, also has a huge plot staked out for a future mansion.

Adler's garage also provides evidence of his growing optimism. It holds a 1990 Mercedez-Benz 500 SL convertible, a 1990 BMW 325 is, a 1989 Range Rover, and a 1989 Bentley Turbo. Even Adler's older cars are in mint condition - a 1982 Mercedez-Benz 380 SEL and his personal favorite, a 1982 Ferrari 400i convertible.

"I like to treat myself every few years," he explains, apparently without considering the cars' model years.

The recent expenditures, including the thousands spent on last week's party, seem of little concern to Adler - because North Beverly Park, you see, is a shoe-in.

"I'm not a risk-taker; I'm only doing this because I know it's a sure thing," says Adler, his tanned face beaming out from under a golf cap.

That spent more than 25 years selling high-end Westside homes when he was a salesman, and later co-owner, of Harleigh Sandler Realtors.

"It was very educational because affluent buyers are very quick to tell you what they didn't like about what you just showed them," he says. "Now I know exactly what they're looking for, what's on their wish lists."

Adler sold his stake in Harleigh Sandler to Merrill Lynch Realty in 1982, and used the proceeds to go full speed ahead with Beverly Park.

Adler claims he now spends seven days on site most weeks.

"I'm up at about 6:30 on weekday mornings, jogging through these streets for about an hour, talking with the workers," he explains during a recent tour of North Beverly Park. "Then I go home for a few laps in my lap pool, then shower and shave and go to the office for phone calls."

His dress is casual most days - a Fila jogging suit and tennies. Suits and ties only see the light of day at his occasional business meetings.

"I had 25 years of suits and ties," he says, referring to his stint as co-owner of Harleigh Sandler Realtors. "Now I'm walking around in dirt all day. Who would I be kidding by wearing a tie? It's not like I'm working in some highrise."

Indeed, Adler has his office ensconced on the second-story of South Beverly Park's 4,000-square-foot guard house. He also has an on-site architect, Joe Ambrose, and general contractor, Gordon Gibson, at hand.

The in-house team was responsible for building half of South Beverly Park's 16 estates, and Ambrose is designing several more for North Beverly Park.

Also on site most days is Adler's 81-year-old father, who himself was a home builder by trade.

"He tools around the site in his '57 Chevy station wagon," Adler explains. "He's my eyes and ears in the field when I'm stuck in meetings. It's like having a clone out there."

Clone or no, Adler refused to let his father be interviewed.

"That wouldn't be appropriate," he insists. "He's not good in interview situations. And I don't think my partners would like that."

The response points up Adler's intense desire to remain in control of all aspects of his project.

"The minute you lose control, people will expand beyond what's appropriate for their lot," he explains. "Next thing you know someone is sneaking in a six-story guest house that blocks everyone else's views."

Adler headed off those potential problems by forming an architectural advisory committee, which he controls, of course.

As awe-inspiring as Beverly Park is, however, Adler is now developing an even bigger project in Palm Springs.

He calls the 700-acre development Canyon Park, and it is planned to include two 18-hole golf courses, a 400-room resort hotel and 350 homes, each on a half-acre lot.

"All those homes will also be high end," he says. "I was raised in the flats of Beverly Hills since I was five years old, and was exposed to people who were well-to-do. So those high standards are the norm for me."