California hotel lists for $5.5M with history spanning from wild west to music videos
The history of a landmark property for sale for $5.5 million in Los Alamos spans the days of California’s Wild West as a stagecoach stop to today’s pop culture as a venue where musicians Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney and Jon Bon Jovi filmed videos, according to Sotheby’s International Realty.
The 1880 Union Hotel now operates as a wedding venue —where guests can use the eight hotel rooms, commercial kitchen, ballroom, saloon and game room and other entertainment spaces — but the property in the past has served as a private residence, restaurant and bar and a hotel.
All of its gorgeous and authentic Old West quarters have been updated with modern luxuries, including the stunning historic saloon and ballroom.
The Santa Barbara County town of Los Alamos was founded in 1876 as a stagecoach line. Four years later, the 1880 Union was built as a stagecoach station with store and lodging. After the structure burned down in 1893, it was rebuilt in 1915 as a hotel and saloon.
In 1972, a cabinetmaker restored the property to its original condition. He meticulously rebuilt a replica of its 1880 façade, according to Sotheby’s International Realty.
The property underwent another extensive refurbishing in 2016 that brought it up to its current luxury standard while staying authentic to its vintage.
“The bulk of the renovations were the nonsexy stuff like electrical, plumbing, air conditioning, and a fair amount of cosmetic upgrades,” listing agent Micah Brady of Brady Group of Sotheby’s International Realty – Santa Ynez Valley Brokerage told realtor.com. “They spent several million dollars doing a lot of that.”
The owners were able to be creative with improving the interior, but the exterior kept its wild west character.
“Because it’s a designated historic building, they were able to do improvements within the interior, but the exterior was a no-go zone,” Brady said.
A new buyer may want to tap into Santa Barbara County’s vibrant wine and food scene.
Actors Kurt Russell and his daughter Kate Hudson recently held a wine tasting at the saloon.
