Scheduled
to open officially on Feb. 1, the century-old icon now includes a restaurant,
rooms with and without private baths, and a saloon that encourages ice cream
floats, soft drinks and gourmet coffee and lattes.
“We
are completely family friendly,” Klaft said. “We
decided we wanted to be different. Every place in town has a liquor license so
we decided we didn’t need one.” This means that the beer served at the saloon
will remain root beer and no one will be turned away, regardless of their age.
The
saloon now has booth and bench seating for 20 and extends to the Buffalo Room,
which can seat another 30 persons. “We have enough space, both inside and out,
to have several parties going on at any one time and everyone can be
comfortable,” he explained.
Over
the past seven months, Klaft and his fulltime
maintenance engineer, Ray Brock, have put new wallboard, paint, and wallpaper
wherever it was needed to bring the structure up to current code. In addition,
the main entrance, lobby, restaurant, saloon and stairs all now have hardwood
floors, recently refinished by Miller’s Hardwood Flooring, Santa Maria.
All
the mattresses and linens have been replaced in the hotel rooms and plumbing
and electrical systems have been updated. There are still four rooms that need
to be finished, but Klaft said they should be
completed by the end of the year. The rooms still under construction include a
wedding suite and a presidential suite, both of which will have balconies that
overlook the spacious backyard.
Currently
there are four lodgings – one is a two-room suite – that have sinks and private
baths with claw-foot tubs. There are seven rooms with a sink but the “toilet
and bath-shower accommodations are down the hall,” he said. Situated
on the second level, all rooms and the bath facilities center around the
stairwell and a cozy lounge that features a potbellied stove and game tables.
At the bottom of the stairs, near the lobby, will be a gift shop.
A
retired landscape contractor, Klaft has been busy on
the large yard surrounding the hotel. He plans to complete the tunnel grape
arbor, which has a heart-shaped entrance and exit, and to cover the pool area
with a dance floor and pull out the old hot tub to create a space for private
parties. He also has planned space for parking and an area for live music.
“I’m
going to add a water feature and create sitting areas, as well as build an
outdoor restaurant area,” Klaft said. He also expects
to create a space to hold Santa Maria-style barbecues on weekends.
The
hotel kitchen is updated and now being used to prepare breakfast for
bed-and-breakfast customers. Most who have stayed there in the last two months
are travelers who have used the hotel in the past and found it was again open
when they were looking for accommodations on the Internet at
www.unionhotelvictmansion.com. “We’ve had clients come from all over Europe and
Japan who have stayed here for years so we’re very happy to tell them about our
all new rooms and restaurant,” Klaft explained.
The
restaurant, initially to be open only on weekends, will have entrees that
include the entire meal – appetizer, soup or salad, main dish, choice of
beverage – and dessert. “If you are too full, we send dessert home with you so
you can enjoy it later – it’s all included,” Klaft
said.
In
its heyday, the Union Hotel was a hub for Hollywood notables. In the 1920s, for
example, travelers to Hearst Castle stopped at the saloon, as did Johnny Cash
and Buck Owens in the 1950s.
The
hotel was the site for videos made by Paul McCartney, Michael Jackson and
country singer Chris LeDoux. It’s also been a
favorite place for Civil War reenactments and outdoor concerts. Its chandeliers
and ceiling medallions are reported to have come from the set of “Gone with the
Wind,” and much of its wallpaper has been cleaned and salvaged to maintain the
Victorian atmosphere.
The
hotel is across the street from Gussied Up, an antique shop owned by Jan Klaft, Dana’s mother.
Dana
expects to have antiques on consignment in the lobby and at the restaurant,
another plus for visitors and those who love historical atmosphere and
furniture.
A
collector of old vehicles, Klaft also plans to park
some of his relics outside the hotel. “I love old cars and I think people who
like to stay here would enjoy seeing them as well,” he said.
Longtime
residents of Nipomo, Klaft and his wife, Terri, have
spent weeks researching ideas for the various hotel rooms. They plan to give
each room its own name and specific personality, which should add to the aura
of the hotel.
“We were happy to learn that the hotel had a great
reputation in the past and we want everyone to know that we’re here to maintain
that ideal and give all our guests a memorable, happy experience while they are
here,” Klaft said. “We are determined to keep the old
Union Hotel on the map.”