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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nThis postcard (above) of the Swallows Motel in Capistrano Beach, c. 1940, is featured in the January 2016 Dana Point Historic Resources Inventory Update by Architectural Resource Group. The reverse side of the postcard reads: \u00a0On U.S. 101 (8 miles So. of Laguna Beach \u2013 halfway between L. A. and San Diego) 30 New attractively furnished units, all with tile bath, radios and private garage. Each unit overlooking the Broad Pacific.\u00a0 Fishing pier directly in front.\u00a0 Greyhound bus stop and restaurants nearby.\u00a0 Guests have access to beach and plunge.\u00a0 Phone:\u00a0 Dana Point 796.<\/em>\u00a0 \u00a0Restored in 1978 as the Capistrano Country Bay Inn, it continued to advertise in the Los Angeles Times in 1988 \u201c . . . as a bed-and-breakfast establishment originally built in the 1930s on the Doheny estate.\u201d\u00a0 The Swallows Motel (now the Seaside Inn) is the last of the local motor inns built in Dana Point midway between Los Angeles and San Diego, around the time of World War II.\u00a0 The earlier 1930 Dana Villa Motel, located across from the Richfield Tower, and the 1945 Plantation Motel on PCH have been demolished. The 1946-47 Dana Point Hotel on Del Prado Avenue (now Jack\u2019s Restaurant) is approved to be demolished in the near future. Former Country Bay Inn employee Terry Rogers is especially concerned because his mother, Gloria Rogers of Beach Road Realty, \u201csaved the Swallows Inn back in the 1970s when it was in worse shape than it is now.\u201d \u00a0Rogers said Gloria persuaded Merv Phelan, who lived on Beach Road, to purchase the inn and finance the renovation that Gloria managed from her realty office in the motel.\u00a0 A 1988 advertisement stated: Each room at the County Bay Inn has been redecorated with antique furnishings and collectibles.\u00a0 Ocean views, fireplaces and patios highlight the rooms. And each room has a wet bar, color TV and direct-dial phone. Most have a refrigerator and guests receive champagne and candy.<\/em>\u00a0 Gloria invited author Norman Simpson of Country Inns and Back Roads<\/em> to visit and the Capistrano County Bay Inn was approved for his guide.\u00a0 Guests had a continental breakfast of croissants, jams, juices and coffee or tea served in the rooms.\u00a0 Terry knows this because he worked there. \u00a0Pierre\u2019s intimate French restaurant was also on the site.\u00a0\u00a0 Pop band members who played at the Miramar Theater (c. 1978-84) stayed there along with San Onofre engineers, who received mid-week rates.\u00a0 Some well-known actors and musicians had extended stays there including June Lockhart, Dean Stockwell and Jerry Lee Lewis. \u00a0When guests arrived by train they were met by one of Merv Phelan\u2019s antique cars, which he kept in the inn\u2019s garages. The Country Bay Inn was later sold and the new owners changed the name to Capistrano Seaside Inn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In recent years the Seaside Inn has received poor reviews, even listed as one of Yelp\u2019s 10 worst motels in the U. S.\u00a0 The City of Dana Point red-tagged the Seaside Inn on September 1, 2016.\u00a0 The Dana Point Times<\/em> reported that Mark Adams of the California Receivership Group (CRG) was appointed to take possession of the historic building sometime in April 2018 because of their experience restoring historic hotels.\u00a0 CRG secured the property, built a retaining wall behind the property and worked on rehabilitation construction plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Sunshine Group LLC owner(s) filed for bankruptcy in 2019, according to Ashley Ludwig of the Laguna Niguel-Dana Point<\/em> Patch,<\/em> on February 21, 2020. The photo taken on May 13, 2020 (above) shows the Seaside Inn boarded and the fence restored after vandals ripped off boards and damaged the fence. Toni Nelson of Capo Cares<\/em> has led the effort on behalf of Capistrano Beach in advocating for a restored Seaside Inn. The Historical Society supports the City of Dana Point and CRG\u2019s efforts along with Terry Roger\u2019s belief that the Capistrano Seaside Inn can be restored as it was in 1978 when it was the Capistrano Country Bay Inn.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Barbara Force Johannes As one would expect, whenever our Historical Society volunteers meet the public we receive questions about historic buildings in Dana Point.\u00a0 …<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Seaside-inn-1024x768.jpg\")
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