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Well Established
After More Than a Centur y, Carmel Establishments Continue to Thrive B Y R E N E E B R I N C K S • P H OTO G R A P H Y F R O M T H E PAT H AT H A WAY C O L L E C T I O N
Carmel Bakery occupies prime real estate on Carmel’s Ocean Avenue, then and now. The sweetsmelling room, now owned by Rich Pepe, has been operating since 1906. Baked goods (like the much praised pretzel), coffee, fruit smoothies and sandwiches now dominate the menu.
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nterprising individuals have long
local history librarian Ashlee Wright, and com-
been drawn to the land surrounding
munity ties also remain strong.
That ladder still hangs on the wall, says current owner Rich Pepe. He grew up working in
Carmel Bay, from Native Americans
“That’s why the businesses here have thrived.
who made their lives there, to Spanish mission-
The community is very much about local busi-
aries who constructed a church, to developers
ness, and I think that’s true all over the penin-
“As far as we know, there have been only
who drew up maps and established a village.
sula,” she says. “Carmel has a lot of pride in
four owners of the building in its 100-year his-
Carmel-by-the-Sea will celebrate 100 years in
what it does.”
tory,” he says. “It has always been operated as
2016, but local businesses and organizations pre-
Looking for further proof? Here are eight
dating the city’s 1916 incorporation have already
local organizations with real staying power.
passed the century mark. While details related to
CARMEL BAKERY
bakeries in New Jersey and purchased Carmel Bakery from Hector De Smet in 1988.
Carmel Bakery.” Pepe is proud to head up one of Carmel’s oldest continually running businesses, and he still
When Carmel Bakery opened in 1906, pine
serves Scottish shortbread and English scones
trees outnumbered buildings on Ocean
made from recipes passed down by previous
Some of those structures have
Avenue. Back then, the business’ founding fami-
bakery owners. He appreciates the lively mix of
changed little over the past
ly lived in the bay-windowed apartment
residents, shopkeepers and visitors who sup-
100 years, explains
above the store, and the baker went to
port his shop. He also finds it rewarding to
work via a ladder connecting the first and
operate a business that serves as a community
ownership and operations have changed, many are still housed in the same buildings.
second floors.
gathering spot.
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The Outdoor Forest Theater had its first production 1910. The original design remains, with wooden benches on the gentle slope, warmed on the stage’s front corners by two bonfire pits. Theater productions and summer movies are enjoyed under the stars, ringed by Carmel’s many trees.
“In small-town America, things like the baker,
lights. You can still see the stars, and it’s quiet, so
butcher, barber and shoemaker are such an
you can really hear what people are doing on
In 1889, when Ocean Avenue was just a dirt
important part of the fabric. In Carmel, we’ve
stage. It’s almost like you’ve gone back in time,”
road running toward the beach, early Carmel
lost a lot of that. So we’re really proud to keep
says Rebecca Barrymore, Forest Theater execu-
landowner Santiago Duckworth opened the
this tradition going,” he says.
tive director.
Hotel Carmelo. Year s later, after Frank
FOREST THEATER A level plot of land surrounded by pine- and oak-covered slopes inspired Herbert Heron.
PINE INN
This summer’s production of “Hamlet” will
Devendorf and Frank Powers purchased some
star John Blyth Barrymore III, reviving the role
of that property, people asked why there wasn’t
made famous by his great-grandfather, John
a hotel closer to the beach.
The actor and director envisioned a commu-
Barrymore, in 1920s London. Similar long-stand-
“So, they put it on pine logs and rolled it
nity theater that featured Carmel residents star-
ing relationships enrich productions at the
down the street to where it is today,” says John
ring in plays penned by Carmel writers. Heron
Forest Theater, where four generations of some
Lloyd, general manager of the Pine Inn—which
approached Carmel Development Company,
families have taken center stage over time.
is what owners renamed the property after
who gave him the land rent-free. The Forest Theater opened with a production of the biblical drama “David” in 1910. The following years welcomed period productions, Shakespearean plays and classics such as “Treasure Island” and “Alice in Wonderland”. Heron eventually deeded the theater to the City of Carmel, and Works Project Administration teams upgraded the facilities in 1939. Today’s theater, however, stays true to the original design. “It’s very unique to experience the events and plays that we’re putting on, and in an outdoor environment not blocked by huge city
“We’re keeping the arts alive in Carmel,” says Rebecca Barrymore.
putting it into place on Ocean Avenue between Lincoln Street and Monte Verde Street.
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The Pine Inn became a center of community life, hosting poetry readings, dances, discussions and even a 1915 Thanksgiving celebration attended by actress Lotta Crabtree. Since the early 1900s, expansions and updates brought a sunroom, stable, tennis court, putting green, rooftop gardens, retail spaces and a glassdomed dining area to the Pine Inn. While not all of those renovations were permanent, guests can explore the hotel’s evolution, and its significance in Carmel’s history, through antique furnishings and photographs documenting more than a century of change at the property. “We’ve gone through a lot of soft goods
The Pine Inn began life in 1889 as the Hotel Carmelo. Sixteen years later, the main building was moved—on logs—four blocks down Ocean Avenue, where it was redecorated and destined to become a popular village gathering spot. Today’s Inn features Il Fornaio Restaurant.
updates,” says Lloyd, “but overall, the aesthetics
that became Carmel-by-the-Sea, a Spanish
structures with a new church in 1793, they
of the hotel remain the same.”
expedition led by Father Junipero Serra and
quarried stone from the Santa Lucia Mountains.
She repositioned the company and, in the
Don Gaspar de Portola arrived on the
It took four years to construct today’s Carmel
tradition of those before her, concentrates on
Monterey Peninsula. The missionaries and sol-
Mission Basilica, and adobe structures were
building lasting relationships.
diers established a mission in Monterey in 1770.
added to enclose the adjacent courtyard. After
“[Prior to our ownership], my grandmoth-
A year later, they moved a few miles south and
the Mexican government closed Carmel
er had been an employee of Carmel Realty
constructed basic wood and mud buildings
Mission in 1834, the complex crumbled and the
Company, and my great aunt was one of the
where the San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
church’s roof collapsed.
first female real estate agents in Carmel,”
Mission now stands.
says Mitchell Lynch. “For me, this business
Harry Downie stands out among those who
When builders decided to replace existing
worked to repair the historically and religiously
really is personal.”
significant site. He started a comprehensive
CARMEL MISSION
excavation and restoration project in 1933. “He was not an architect or a builder, but he
More than a century before developers
was passionate about Carmel Mission,” says
divided land into lots and sold the parcels
Wright, local history librarian at Carmel’s Carmel’s famous Mission, on the south end of town, was built between 1793 and 1797 by Spanish missionaries. The first building fell into disrepair around 1834, but was refurbished by local resident Harry Downie in 1933. It is an active church, and hosts community events
Harrison Memorial Library.
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C A R M E L R E A L T Y C O M PA N Y The Carmel Realty Company archives contain documents dating back to the company’s earliest days. At the time, Carmel-by-the-Sea was an unincorporated area and agents helped clients find homes, establish farms and create businesses in the budding community. Letters requesting rent payments are written in formal, customer-centric English. Old photos show Carmel Realty’s office a few doors down from its current location in the same building. This year, as the company celebrates a century in business, owners Dan and Shelly Mitchell Lynch make each decision with that rich history in mind. In 1905, artist Christian Jorgensen designed La Playa for his wife, as a family residence. The mansion, with its gorgeous gardens and ocean views, was expanded into a luxury hotel in 1916. The pink-hued hotel, remodeled in 2012, is a popular wedding location.
“It is a responsibility that we take very seriously, because we respect the 100-year tradition and all the work that went into this amaz-
Additional seismic retrofitting and restoration
“The hotel has such history that you don’t
ing company,” says Shelly Mitchell Lynch, a
work that began at the mission in 2011 is sched-
have to look far to find the character,” says La
fourth-generation real estate professional. Her
uled to wrap up by this summer.
Playa General Manager Mar y Crowe. “And
family founded The Mitchell Group, and
L A P L A YA H O T E L
because it’s only had five owners since con-
expanded the real estate firm after purchasing
struction, and it’s always been privately held, it’s
Carmel Realty in the early 1990s. When
really maintained a lot of that character.”
Sotheby’s International Realty acquired The
During 2012 renovations at La Playa Hotel, crews uncovered an old trunk under the 1905 structure. Research suggests that it belonged to a well-traveled military general who passed away in the 1930s. Previous owners of the hotel held on to other treasures, too, including newspaper clippings, portraits and a 1940s Christmas dinner menu that hotel managers hope to someday re-create. There are also collateral pieces from a honeymooners club that operated in the 1950s. Couples who married at La Playa received a certificate and a card that outlined rules for the groom on one side and rules for the bride on the other. Landscape
ar tist
Christian
Jorgensen
designed the mansion that’s now the heart of La Playa as a gift to his wife, Angela, a member of the Ghirardelli family. After they sold the home, it was remodeled and reopened as a boarding house and then a hotel. Subsequent renovations preserved many of the property’s historic features, including light fixtures, stained glass windows and turn-of-the-century tiles. 80
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In 1913, Carmel Realty Company was created by the Mitchell family. Real estate in Carmel then primarily consisted of farms and cottages. Rent notes were hand-written. Shelly Mitchell Lynch keeps her business in the family, selling exclusive properties and managing luxury rentals.
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operation since then. Alan Williams picked up the name as part of a rebranding of Carmel Design, the privately held business he founded in 1971, and today’s Carmel Development stays true to the goals of the original. Devendorf insisted on preserving trees as the city grew and, according to the City of Carmelby-the-Sea’s Historical Context Statement, “his passion was for building communities.” Williams takes a similar approach to his renovation, restoration and building projects, which include work at Tehama, the Hog’s Breath Inn and sevOcean Avenue’s Carmel Drug Store opened in 1910. One of California’s first female pharmacists worked there, and it is still owned by her family. Carmel Drug blends traditional and modern, providing personalized service, unusual soaps and perfumes, souvenir keychains, and more.
eral other downtown Carmel properties. He spent more than seven years refurbishing Clint Eastwood’s Mission Ranch, matching original
Arnold. “They come in after school and say
architectural details right down to the hardware
to Carmel Realty.
hello, and it gives it that mom-and-pop feeling.
and doorframes.
CARMEL DRUG
It's a family-run business.”
Mitchell Group in 2005, Mitchell Lynch held on
Carmel Drug has played a role in local and pharmaceutical history since opening on Ocean
C A R M E L D E V E LO P M E N T C O M PA N Y
“Carmel is a great place to live,” says Williams. “The real task is to be as gentle to the land as you can, and to create an environment
Avenue in 1910 (or, possibly as early as 1905,
After forming Carmel Development Co-
where people can enjoy the community with-
suggest some documents). Virginia Harris Burke,
mpany in 1902, James Franklin Devendorf and
out modifying it greatly. That means preserving
one of California’s first female pharmacists, built
Frank Powers set about establishing a town in
something like Mission Ranch, where there is a
her career here, and her granddaughters still
the hills above Carmel Bay. Though the compa-
heritage you want to maintain, but also creat-
own the property.
ny’s creation predates Carmel-by-the-Sea’s
ing things like Tehama, which is a new heritage
incorporation, it has not been in continuous
in itself.”
Current business owners Ross and Erin Arnold purchased Carmel Drug in 2003—Ross worked with the previous owner for seven years before that—and they’ve made a point of preserving the old-time feel. Many of the building’s original fixtures are still in place, including 1920s shelves and drawers, vintage display cases and antique ceiling lamps hanging from chains. The pharmacy’s personal service also calls to mind days gone by. Store managers Aaron Wolovsky and Junior Silva know many shoppers by name, and long-time customers maintain instore charge accounts so they can pop in and grab what they need without a wait. Carmel Drug also offers delivery service, and the young Arnold boys occasionally hang around the store, as well. “It’s my responsibility to take care of this Carmel tradition and hopefully pass it on to one of my three sons down the road,” says Ross 82
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Carmel’s pioneers, James Devendorf and Frank Powers, opened Carmel Development Company in 1902 to begin creating the village. Devendorf designed the subdivision and a park, insisting on preserving local trees. Bay Area artists and writers began arriving.
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