Asilomar opens Historic Preservation Center
PACIFIC GROVE – A ribbon-cutting ceremony at Asilomar Hotel and Conference Grounds celebrated the opening of the Historic Preservation Center on Wednesday, a new space dedicated to preserving the history and original structure of the property.
Asilomar partnered with California State Parks and Aramark Destinations, a facility management organization that will do the on-the-ground labor of maintaining, preserving and business affairs.
Dozens of city officials, State Parks representatives and residents were in attendance including Pacific Grove Mayor Nick Smith, several council members, the Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce and a representative from Congressman Jimmy Panetta's office.
"I believe this space will honor the past, while giving to future generations," Smith said.
The Historic Preservation Center once served as a space for craftsmen to use. The goal is to once again make it a working wood shop for the public.
"We want future generations to walk into the same building that people walked into 100 years ago," said Alex Marin, General Manager of Asilomar. "Now we start the actual preservation work, restoring the windows, replacing old wood structures and finding as close to the original materials as possible."
Part of the historic preservation process is using original materials. Shawn Quedou, Historic Preservation Center project manager, is taking the lead with his own craftsman knowledge and plans to start immediately.
Quedou said the structure of older buildings like Asilomar used stronger, longer lasting materials. Inside the Historic Preservation Center on Wednesday, guests could see how wood and glass from 100 years ago is restored, which tools have been used, and the difference between wood used in the 1930's and today. He also collects raw materials from different areas to use in the preservation process.
"I try to source material from local demolitions," Quedou said. "That's wood and glass that's not going into the garbage."
Officials are looking at a timeline of four to six months before the preservation is complete for the Historic Preservation Center, but the space opened up Thursday and will remain open as restorations are made.
"Over the next six months, you'll see one of our historic buildings looking a little shinier, in a little bit better condition," Marin said. "We're restoring wooden gutters and century old glass, it's been a lot of planning."
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This story was originally published July 16, 2026 at 2:59 PM.