Page 16 - 2019 Las Vegas & San Miguel Co. Visitors Guide

Photo courtesy Andy Kingsbury
Las Vegas had been long out of touch with its Harvey roots. But not for much longer. In 2013 Allan and Tina were convinced by many people (including us) that they should save the Castañeda. They decided to go one step further: they spent $4 million to buy not only the shell of the Castañeda and its liquor license, but also the working Plaza Hotel in Old Town. They an- nounced they would run the Plaza while raising the money and tax credits to restore the Castañe- da. And in the meantime, they would get com- fortable in their new second home, and become part of the diverse community.
Allan and Tina and their team from La Posa- da, especially Dan Lutzick, began shuttling be- tween Winslow and Las Vegas on the Southwest
Chief—the same train Fred and Ford Harvey themselves used to take to inspect their hotels and restaurants. By crossing the Arizona/New Mex- ico border, they helped Fred Harvey fans in both states—who now referred to themselves collectively as “FredHeads”—come to- gether, along with Harvey family members discover- ing their hospitality roots.
I had been doing annual talks about Fred Har- vey subjects in Santa Fe at the New Mexico History Museum, which created a permanent Fred Harvey exhibit, and at La Fonda Hotel--where board chair and co-owner Jenny Kimball was restoring her hotel to an updated version of its Harvey/Colter splendor, including docents who gave tours of the original art. But after the Castañeda sale, those talks expanded into a whole Fred Harvey Histo- ry Weekend in Santa Fe and Las Vegas. This fall event now draws hundreds from around the globe, for lectures and Fred Harvey-inspired meals—and includes an annual reunion of Fred Harvey’s de- scendants. A Harvey Girls group was started in Las Vegas, along with a Harvey-themed tour business,
Kathy Hendrickson’s Southwest Detours.
Allan and Tina put another mil- lion dollars into refreshing the Plaza Hotel, and built up its business, but it took them longer than expected to get tax credits for the Castañeda. There were some nervous moments when it wasn’t clear the whole proj- ect would come to fruition. We just happened to be visiting with them—we were eating lunch at a restaurant in Flagstaff—on the day they decided to move forward. It was a huge decision. They would be committing to living in two places they adored, in two different Har- vey hotels they loved. It was also a huge decision for the future of Las Vegas, because it meant they would guarantee another $5 million for the Castañeda restoration, which would be spent almost entirely on local artisans and local materials, to create the first true destination hotel and restaurant in this city of 13,000 residents. Their hope was that this would bring not only tour- ism, but also entrepreneurs and art- ists to help re-energize Las Vegas.
During dessert, they decided to
go for it. Calls were made to secure funding from Clearinghouse CDFI, US Bank, and the Santa Fe Community Foundation. Within weeks, they had begun a process to get most of the restoration done in just a year—in part because they were excited to open a second Harvey heritage hotel, but also because the tax credits required a speedy job.
Suddenly, every day at the Castañeda began looking like time-lapse photography—with doz- ens of workers quickly replacing, rebuilding and restoring everything from the deepest darkest basement to the cupola and spire at the top of the tower. By the time the CBS Sunday Morning crew arrived, the structural work was completed. But it wasn’t until the restored sign was dramatically un- covered—with Allan and Tina and CBS’s Michelle Miller dancing (gingerly) on the balcony below it--that it felt like the place would really be alive relatively soon.
The amount of detail work to guarantee historic authenticity, but also modern conveniences, has been extraordinary. The 38 original guest rooms were reconfigured into twenty suites, and the pub- lic spaces—inside and out—were lovingly repur- posed. In the tradition of their restoration at La Posada—where rooms were finished one at a time and then offered to hotel guests—they will open twelve guest rooms this spring, and then have the entire hotel ready for a grand opening ceremony in late October. While the FredHeads see this as a new Harvey history outpost, Allan and Tina are clear that this is all about Las Vegas, helping the city get back in touch with its history, its people, its businesses, its architecture, its educational institu- tions, and its great beauty and heart.
The first guest stayed in a restored room at the Castañeda on March 29, and a couple more the next week. The bar opened later in April, and the new restaurant Kin at Castañeda—run by Sean Sinclair, one of New Mexico’s best-known and best-loved chefs—will debut this summer. Rooms will continue being added into the fall.
And they will all be ready for the official Grand Opening, which will take place on Sunday Octo- ber 27th, as the highlight of the Fred Harvey His- tory Weekend. That night, every room in the hotel will be occupied by a descendent of Fred Harvey, or someone intimately involved in the dramatic comeback of the hotel and Las Vegas. The commu- nity will come together for dinner that night at the Castañeda, and celebrate the past and the future.
For the Castañeda and Las Vegas, the best is yet to come.
Stephen Fried is an award-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author who teaches at Columbia University and Penn, and every fall oversees the “Fred Harvey History Weekend” in Santa Fe and Las Vegas (this year, October 25-28).
Photo courtesy Andy Kingsbury
16 | Las Vegas & San Miguel Co. Visitors Guide 2019