SITE HISTORY

Constructed in 1921

Henry (Allen) Rispin and his wife, Annette, were part of a syndicate investing in the purchase of Capitola from the heirs of the resort’s originator, Frederick Hihn, in 1919. The goal of Rispin’s Capitola Company had been to improve the seaside resort, profiting through real estate sales in expanding subdivisions. The plans fell short, and by the end of the 1920s, Rispin was financially overextended. In a 1929 auction, the mansion’s ownership and other Capitola holdings were transferred to another syndicate investor, Robert Hays Smith. After Smith himself suffered bankruptcy in 1936, the residence stood empty five years until it was sold for use by the Poor Clares, a cloistered order of nuns. Several residential development proposals were considered by the city once the nuns were relocated to Aptos in 1959. Community groups seeking to preserve the mansion successfully lobbied for the city’s purchase in 1985. Frequent vandalism remained a problem until May 2009, when Capitola City Council approved a $14 million, 25-room boutique hotel for the site. Coincidentally, the mansion was largely destroyed in a fire later that year. All development plans ended, but the building itself was spared. The structure was stabilized and plans were drawn in 2014 for the Park at the Rispin project. Restoration and expansion plans are on-going for the Park at Rispin Mansion, now open 6 a.m. to sunset at 2000 Wharf Road in Capitola.

More detailed history here: https://rispincapitola.weebly.com/