Many hotels in and around La Jolla have an amazing history, and the Hotel Casa de Mañana meaning ‘The House of Tomorrow’ is up there with the best of them.
Sitting atop the rugged La Jolla cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean, at 849 Coast Blvd., Casa de Mañana Hotel was touted in the mid-1920s as “La Jolla’s only oceanfront hotel,” and the place to visit for the summer months.
On July 4, 1924, Hotel Casa de Mañana had its grand opening and began its amazing legacy with storied archways, breathtaking views, red-tiled roofs, and Spanish architecture.
History says …“On one sunny La Jolla day while visiting her mother nearby, the Colorado native stood high above the cliffs overlooking the Pacific and envisioned an elegant, luxurious hotel harmoniously situated on the edge of the sea. What Mrs. Isabel Morrison Hopkins would soon create was much more than a hotel — she created a legend.”
However, gone are those days when guests arrived on horseback as it is a luxury senior community owned and operated by Front Porch.
BACK IN THE DAY
The Hotel Casa de Mañana was the dream of Hopkins and a pamphlet from the period says it was, “Where tomorrow’s cares are forgotten,” and “rates, $8, $9, or $10 per day, single person, with baths, $14, $16 or $18 per day, two people with bath, American plan.” It was operated by the Van Noy-Interstate Co.
By many accounts, it was surely a grand day when the Hotel Casa de Mañana opened in the summer of 1924.
The same day the Casa opened a new electric railroad line inaugurating its route between San Diego and La Jolla, and the first street lights were ensconced on Prospect Avenue.
It wasn’t long before the Hotel Casa de Mañana became the social center of La Jolla where everything from weddings to banquets, civic and social club luncheons, concerts, and poetry readings were held.
Even celebrities and politicians found their way to the Casa as one report said J. Edgar Hoover, former director of the FBI, was a visitor.
A newspaper article from Sept. 30, 1937, read: “J. Edgar Hoover, head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, visited Casa de Mañana for a week with Clyde Tolson and Guy Hattee, all of Washington D.C. They spent most of their time in seclusion at one of the hotel’s cottages and left Friday by plane for Washington. Mr. Hoover expressed himself as highly pleased with the scenic conditions here and the high moral tone of the community, promising to come again.”
Another article stated that British actor Arthur Treacher also visited the resort, he was The Constable in the 1964 film “Mary Poppins”; and had roles in the 1944 film “National Velvet,” starring a teenage Elizabeth Taylor and Mickey Rooney; and in various Shirley Temple movies.
UNUSUAL FOR THE TIME
Of course, the original hotel had a main building offering several cocktail lounges and a restaurant for guests.
One such place to dine according to the blog Classic San Diego was the Lanai Room in business from 1952-1953, “a tropical pre-Tiki restaurant inside Hotel Casa de Mañana designed by Edgar Ulrich.”
The hotel had its “regular dining room offered menu staples such as steak, lamb chops, shrimp, Welsh rarebit …” the Lanai Room, like many other restaurants in the 1950s.
“It did offer some ‘exotic’ dishes thanks to its Tiki theme including “Shrimp and Lobster Stew, and Hawaiian Beef Sukiyaki with Steamed Rice…”
The blog added, the Lanai Room also had live music and dancing and was decorated with … “blossoming trees with birds in the branches,” sealife creatures like “seahorses, starfish, and ‘artistic wood blocks in oil’ created by the wife of hotel manager Col. Henry R. Dutton.”
But by April 1953 it was closed down when approval was granted for the property to be converted from a hotel to a private retirement community.
WAR HITS
But before the Lanai Room, during the 1940s and World War II, the Casa was having money issues due to the economy. Hopkins then opened it to U.S. Navy soldiers returning from combat, operating the hotel as a place to rest and a recuperation center. But the economy was still bad, and she decided to sell the hotel.
It was sold for $5 million to Pacific Homes in 1953, which transformed the Casa into an upscale assisted living community. A second grand opening of a luxurious retirement community with 108 charter members in residence took place.
Back then it was reported that Pacific Homes was affiliated with the Methodist Church, therefore cocktail lounges and bars were converted for other purposes; one a library and the other a Methodist chapel — which are still there.
PACIFIC HOMES ADD MORE
As adjoining properties became available, Pacific Homes acquired them to expand Casa de Mañana. In 1965, six “Loma” cottages were opened and occupied in 1967. Casa de Mañana had a groundbreaking ceremony for what it would term the Riviera Cottages.
In late 1987, Casa de Mañana was added to San Diego’s list of designated Historic Landmarks. By 1999, Pacific Homes merged with three other not-for-profit organizations to form what is now Front Porch Communities.
TRUE LUXURY, STILL
No longer affiliated with the Methodist Church, Front Porch Communities operates Casa de Mañana and there is no religious association.
“Casa de Mañana is proud of its history as both a hotel and senior living community. As a retirement community, Casa offers residents not only great nostalgia for a by-gone era but also first-class service and amenities, a sense of belonging and friendship in such an exquisite location by the sea in La Jolla,” said Kurt Norden, executive director of the Casa de Mañana.
In 2021, Front Porch and Covia announced their affiliation bringing two California nonprofit organizations together under a single management team and governance, as Front Porch.
The organization supports 54 communities, 3,000 employees, 7,500 residents, and more than 6,000 participants in programs and services nationwide.
“This affiliation combines outstanding people and resources from across California and beyond. Our expanded scale, flexibility, and resources further improve our stability, particularly during periods of volatility,” said John Woodward, CEO of Front Porch since 2015, in a news release provided by Front Porch marketing. “Our combined expertise will better meet the needs of current and future residents as we stay ahead of trends and anticipate changing market conditions.”
As its first action, the newly organized Front Porch board of directors, drawn from Covia and Front Porch, approved the updated mission, vision, and core values for the unified organization.
“Covia and Front Porch decided to affiliate with the belief that we are better together,” board member Vince Forte said. “We look forward to fulfilling our vision to empower individuals to live connected and fulfilled lives through community and innovation.”
Headquartered in Glendale, Front Porch has 51 communities throughout the state, stretching from Santa Rosa to San Diego, and one each in Florida, Louisiana, and Arizona. The organization also serves people throughout the United States through community services and other programs.
From its early days as a resort situated on a hilltop where guests arrived on horseback to today where residents enjoy everything from yoga to fine meals, the Casa de Mañana continues to be the social hub for many.
