Sale of historic Lucerne Hotel finalized
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
LUCERNE, Calif. – The county of Lake has closed escrow on the sale of the historic Lucerne Hotel.
Carol Huchingson, the county’s administrative officer, said the county received the $2.5 million asking price on Thursday.
Members of the Board of Supervisors told Lake County News they had only had confirmation of the sale from Huchingson during a special Wednesday board workshop.
The Romero Institute, headquartered in Santa Cruz, did not respond to a Friday request from Lake County News for comment.
The historic building, sold over the objection of many community members, was purchased by the county in 2010. The goal was to renovate it and possibly use it for a conference center. The county’s renovation and remodeling efforts resulted in it becoming a Northshore stimulus project.
The building had housed a four-year college, the county’s first and only, until Marymount California University abruptly left in June 2017, as Lake County News has reported.
Since then, Huchingson had pushed the sale through the board, claiming it was necessary because of the county’s financial situation. She led a consultant selection committee that chose the Romero Institute’s proposal to put “New Paradigm College” in the building and then secured the board’s agreement in August to sell the building to the group.
Currently, a search of national and state charitable registries showthere is no freestanding nonprofit to support the entity, New Paradigm College, the Web site of which say it will offer “an academically challenging, culturally rich, and practically grounded degree program in Global Studies.”
According to the proposal selected by the county, New Paradigm College will establish a “preeminent four year accredited educational institution pioneering bachelor of arts program in Integrative Global Studies, an accredited university extension program offering extension courses, certificate granting and degrees completion programs in addition to operating an event and conference center.”
The proposal states that a dedicated project funder “stands ready to provide the funding for the purchase and renovation of The Lucerne Castle as the Campus for New Paradigm College” and that renovations will begin upon close of escrow.
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