Bitar Mansion, Mediterranean Revival mansion in Laurelhurst, Portland, US.

Bitar Mansion is a 17-room Mediterranean-style house of 12,000 square feet, designed by Herman Brookman and built in 1927. A bell-cast entrance tower with a curved stairway anchors low-pitched roofs; stone peacocks flank the French doors, and a marble-floored ballroom, heated pool and parterre overlooking Laurelhurst Park lie within.

Built in 1927 for Harry A. Green at a cost of $410,000, the house was designed by Herman Brookman, who also designed Congregation Beth Israel and Fir Acres. Robert and Mable Bitar bought it in 1951; Robert, an honorary consul to Lebanon, lived there until his death in 2000. The home first went on the market in 55 years in 2006, sold for $1.825 million, was foreclosed, and auctioned at the Multnomah County Courthouse in August 2011 for $1.605 million.

The house's name comes from Robert and Mable Bitar, who bought it in 1951; Robert had vowed as a boy to own it one day. A grocery store owner and real estate investor, he later became an honorary consul to Lebanon and lived there until his death in 2000. While the Bitar family owned it, the house hosted First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, pianist Van Cliburn, state governors and U.S. senators.

Bitar Mansion is a private residence on a parcel equal to seven standard city lots beside Laurelhurst Park, so visits are limited to viewing the facade and gardens from the street. The bell-cast entrance tower, bronzed iron gates and red-tiled roofs are best seen from the public sidewalk; the interior, including the marble-floored ballroom and heated pool, is not open to visitors.

Robert Bitar, a grocery store owner and real estate investor, recalled vowing as a young boy to own this house one day; he bought it in 1951 and lived there until his death in 2000. While the Bitar family owned it, the mansion hosted First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, pianist Van Cliburn, state governors and U.S. senators.