Soon-to-close Mt. Ada inn to reopen early next year

The Inn on Mt. Ada, Santa Catalina Island’s iconic hilltop bed-and-breakfast that’s set to close Nov. 30, will reopen early next year under new management.

The reopening will bring the inn, onetime home of chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr., full circle. The bed-and-breakfast will be operated by the Santa Catalina Island Co., which Wrigley founded in 1894.

“We think we’re the only company on the island or overtown [mainland] that will truly have the passion to meticulously restore the inn to where it was,” said Randall Herrel Sr., president and chief executive of the island company.

The inn, which offers a spectacular view of Avalon Bay, had begun to weather in recent years. Herrel thinks it will cost millions to restore the inn.

The Wrigley family donated the home to USC more than half a century ago; eventually the university granted a 30-year lease to the current bed-and-breakfast operators, who will continue to run the facility until the end of November when that lease expires. (It is fully booked through the end of the month.)

USC signed a new long-term lease with Santa Catalina Island Co. effective Dec. 1.

The school wanted the inn “to continue in the same fashion it has for decades, as an iconic bed-and-breakfast,” university spokeswoman Laurie Stone said.

Herrel said the company is trying to work out a land swap with USC so the company can own the home outright.

“The Inn on Mt. Ada’s historic legacy as the former home of the Wrigley family deserves the utmost care and respect, “ Herrel said. “We are pleased to continue that legacy and welcome back guests who have been coming to the Inn for generations, along with new visitors.”

The inn will be closed during December for cleaning and minor renovations and will reopen in early 2015, Herrel said. Extensive renovations will take place over time, he said, “but we plan to keep the business open while these are being done.”

After Nov. 17, call the Santa Catalina Island Co., (877) 778-9395, for information or reservations.

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