This Week on the Central Coast…
PG approves a new hotel, CSUMB partners with NASA, Monterey approves home-restaurants, Rancho Cielo wins a national competition, and Watsonville plans a downtown renovation.
Monterey
A New Luxury Hotel Breaks Ground in Pacific Grove
The Kimpton Pacific Grove Hotel broke ground a couple weeks ago on Central Avenue. The event was celebrated by executives of the Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants group, property owners and developers, and Pacific Grove Mayor Pro Tempore with a ceremonious dig with golden shovels and a champagne toast.
Residents opposed the hotel in 2017 and forced the project to make changes. After being subject to an environmental impact report, the number of rooms was reduced and the design was shifted from a faux-Victorian style (which one council member called “hideous”) to a Spanish colonial look that matches the library and Museum of Natural History.
Once finished, the hotel will feature 101 guest rooms, six suites, and a “hospitality parlor” with a private outdoor terrace. The restaurant and bar will focus on local, fresh seafood and produce. To complement the restaurant, there will be a 3,650 square foot courtyard with a fireplace.
Montrio Bistro Welcomes a New Mixologist
Fabian Osornio is the newest creative mind at Montrio Bistro. The distinguished mixologist worked at Pangaea Grill in Carmel before and was responsible for the creation of their over-the-top Bloody Mary’s. Before that, he worked in Santa Cruz and with Salinas-owned Tequila Alderete. Throughout it all, he was always aware of Montrio’s stature.
Osornio had originally planned on becoming a chef, but realized his true passion lied with the bar. “The feeling I get when someone tries one of my cocktails for the first time. There’s a feeling of satisfaction.” Ever creative, Osornio loves working with seasonal ingredients, showcasing the versatility of the liquors with unique flavors. As Montrio changes their menu for the fall, Osornio is planning cocktails that pair perfectly with crackling fires and holiday cheer. “One week he tweaked the classic bee’s knees, starting with a gin he infused with camomile. But he also hints at new creations from mezcal and tequila, playing on the smoky, spicy savor of fall.”
If anyone is worried that his style might change the beloved offerings of Montrio, they should be pleased to hear that he only has two rules when crafting a new menu: the new cocktails have to be well-balanced, and the old favorites (such as the Brown Butter Old Fashioned) will not change.
CSUMB Receives a Grant to Partner with NASA
CSU Monterey Bay received a grant that will be put towards water-use research, particularly in a program called OpenET. Working with NASA, the program will help researchers see how much water is accessible to a region. The information is expected to help make advances in the sustainability of water supplies for agriculture, as well as help create new useful tools for California farmers and firefighters.
A couple of CSUMB faculty serve as liaisons to NASA. “Susan Alexander, professor and chair of the Department of Applied Environmental Science, is the CSUMB/NASA Co-op principal investigator. Forrest Melton, previously with CSUMB, and now a senior scientist at NASA Ames Research Center, is the OpenET project scientist.”
Students will help with data analysis, laboratory readings, and field-based projects. CSUMB has more than 25 years of cooperation with NASA.
Monterey SPCA Asking for Acorn Donations
The SPCA Monterey County Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center says it has 33 young animals, including raccoons and squirrels. Acorns are a part of both animals’ diets. While the center will accept any acorns, they mentioned that California Live Oak acorns are preferred.
Donations are accepted from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The center is located at 1002 Monterey Salinas Highway, across the highway from Laguna Seca.
New Monterey Program Allows Homes to Become Restaurants
A new home kitchen food permit was approved for Monterey county, called the “Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation Permit” (MEHKO). The bill was passed to create an easier path to opening a restaurant, continuing Monterey County’s mission to help small business owners succeed.
MEHKOs follow the same rules as commercial kitchens, including being subject to inspections by the health department. Once you obtain a MEHKO permit, you can essentially open a pop-up restaurant at your house. You can even serve alcoholic beverages if you obtain the proper permits. The new permit builds on Monterey County’s goal of helping small business owners realize their dreams with affordable solutions.
Rancho Cielo Team Wins National Construction Competition
Rancho Cielo’s construction students won first place at the Orange County Sustainability Decathlon at the Orange County Fair and Event Center in Costa Mesa.
The team won in two categories: Architecture and Interior Design and Sustainability and Resilience. On a separate day, the team won second place in the engineering and construction category as well as second place in the communication and marketing category. Rancho Cielo beat Cal Poly, who took second, and a UC Irvine / Orange Coast College team.
The winning structure was built on Rancho Cielo’s campus, then was taken apart in sections for transportation to the competition. Now that the event is over, the building will be deconstructed again to be brought back to the campus where it will serve as staff housing. Eventually, students will construct a small, sustainable village on campus.
Santa Cruz
Watsonville City Council Approved a Plan to Redesign Downtown
Watsonville approved plans to renovate downtown into a “vibrant and bustling place where commerce, mixed-use housing and a redesigned transit system intermingle and trees line a narrowed, two-lane Main Street.”
The plans illustrate a change to downtown that will feature affordable housing and mixed-use commercial buildings as well as including the use of historical buildings, such as the Fox Theater and Mansion House. Vast improvements to the walkability and bikeability will also be addressed in order to ensure pedestrian safety on the busy streets.
While downtown Watsonville has some businesses and events of interest, it isn’t the bustling hub that the city envisions it could be. This plan gets it closer to that goal.