Inside Bonita Domes, an ‘alien-like creation' in Joshua Tree, on market for $2.1 million

Ready to step into a life-sized sandcastle and pretend you’re living on the moon? For just over $2.1 million, the experience could be yours.

Bonita Domes, a collection of surreal coiled-earth structures based on a design by Iranian-American architect Nader Khalili, is on the market in Joshua Tree, California.

The five-bedroom, three-bathroom space includes all the standard comforts in a terrestrial living space, including a kitchen, a living area, a “communal bath dome,” BBQ area, fire pit, pool and a small non-denominational temple for meditation (or anything else you care to do in a quasi-sacred space).

According to the owner, Bonita Domes’ unusual design stems from work Khalili did for NASA on lunar living structures using found materials with maximum stability and minimal maintenance.

“It's made up of earth that is scooped into bags that are coiled, that is stacked into each dome,” said listing agent James Bianco. The agent said the coil structures are supported by barbed wire and added that the process is “a very time-intensive build.”

The original central domes were built between 2012 and 2019, according to Bianco. The current owner, a film producer named Jeff Weiss, purchased the property in late 2020 for just over $800,000, according to property records.

Weiss built three additional dome structures on the property in the same design, including an outhouse dome with a shower, bath and skylight for natural lighting while you bathe. Combined with the new pool, the meditation temple and the revamped landscaping, Bianco said these upgrades more than justified the leap in price over the last two years.

Weiss has operated Bonita Domes as a short-term rental running at roughly $780 per night in recent years. It is currently permitted for eight guests, although Bianco said a new owner could apply for permitting to expand beyond that.

The agent said a future buyer could tap into the property’s potential to host larger events like corporate getaways, weddings and photoshoots looking for a unique setting. He said he saw investors or any (wealthy) individual just looking for a “trophy piece” as equally good ideal buyers for the property.

“It’s something that’s extremely different, unique,” Bianco said, “almost like an extraterrestrial creation.”

James B. Cutchin covers business in the Coachella Valley. Reach him at james.cutchin@desertsun.com.