Site Sought in Santa Monica for Large Hostel

American Youth Hostels Inc. is scouting a site in Santa Monica for what could become one of the largest youth hostels in North America, according to organization spokesmen.

The proposed hostel would have 150 to 200 beds and could house an estimated 14,000 to 16,000 people a year, said Tom Lowery, a spokesman for the nonprofit corporation.

The hostel also would offer showers, a kitchen, laundry and lobby, Lowery said. Nightly fees in hostels are $6.25 for members for up to five nights, and $8.25 for non-members for a maximum of two nights, he said.

One of a number of sites considered in Santa Monica is a lot on 2nd Street between Broadway and Santa Monica Boulevard, which includes Santa Monica’s historic old City Hall, said Rosario Perry, an attorney for the owner of the property. The owner wants the hostel organization to preserve the building as a museum, Perry said.

Ken Genser, Western regional director of hostel development for the organization, said there is no final agreement on a location or financing.

Genser said he plans to have a site plan and budget for the hostel in about a month. The opening would not be for at least two years, he said.

The corporation may receive money from the California Coastal Conservancy, the funding arm of the Coastal Commission, as well as private donations, Genser said.

The hostel organization, based in Washington, D.C., has proposed the Santa Monica hostel as part of its chain of 18 along the California coast. There are 31 hostels in California and 325 nationally. The largest, with 160 beds, is in San Francisco. The corporation plans to open a 400-bed hostel in New York City by 1987.

There are 100,000 paid members in American Youth Hostels Inc. It is part of the International Youth Hostel Federation, which has more than 3 million members and maintains 5,000 hostels worldwide. About 80% of the visitors to the group’s hostels in the United States are from abroad, said John Estrada, who works at its hostel in Harbor City.

Under hostel rules, non-members may stay a maximum of two nights at any one facility and must wait at least 21 days before they can use that facility again. That way, the hostels “specifically encourage members and people who are traveling rather than people looking for a place to live,” Lowery said.