Guasti Winery Sold

Future uncertain for newly sold Guasti property

ONTARIO - The dramatic announcement that the historic Guasti property in Ontario has been sold prompts an immediate follow-up question: What's going to be there now?

The answer: No one knows for certain.

"We're going to do a mixed-use project, which would include retail, office, a hotel and residential," said Jim Reynolds of OliverMcMillan, the development firm that now owns Guasti. "Possibly two hotels. We don't really know yet."

The San Diego-based firm spent close to $35 million on the 49-acre property, which includes the 40 acres owned by the Pauley family that are home to the Guasti Villa and other historic buildings.

The villa, once the home of winery founder Secondo Guasti, will be preserved under the terms of city codes requiring the historic buildings at the Guasti property to be saved.

That includes the bungalows on the east side of the property, where vineyard workers lived in the early days of the winery, which was founded in 1900.

"Some of the bungalows need to be saved, and some of them don't. Whatever's required (by Ontario ordinances), we're keeping and we're fixing," Reynolds said. "We're going to make this a real special place."

So far, the firm expects to build about 250,000 square feet of retail shops and 600,000 square feet of office space. Plans for any residential uses such as apartments, condominiums or town homes haven't yet been finalized.

The first work to be done will involve renovating and reusing the historic buildings on the site, Reynolds said.

"Ontario's expanding very rapidly, and so is the airport," he said. "One of the most appealing things is the city government there is smart and aggressive and will work with us to develop a fabulous project."

Whatever does get built on the Guasti property will have to fit in with the Ontario Airport Towers, a project sandwiched between the villa and Interstate 10 that includes four office buildings ranging from five to eight stories high.

It's not clear which, if any, of the businesses currently located at the Guasti property will be able to remain once the new owners finalize their plans.

Pauley, whose family owned Guasti from 1952 until last week, said there's a good chance that the Joseph Filippi wine tasting room, the Guasti Cafe and Saffron Catering and Event Services would be able to stay.

Courtesy of The Daily Bulletin