Resort

The Resort at Pelican Hill was recognized as a AAA Five Diamond destination for the third consecutive year since opening in 2008, a resort spokeswoman announced. American Automobile Assn. diamond ratings are determined by an evaluation of a resort's level of service, decor and amenities, according to company spokeswoman Kate Starr. "As our third anniversary approaches later this fall, the entire Pelican Hill team is honored to be recognized with the AAA Five Diamond Award for the third time, Giuseppe Lama, resort managing director, said in a prepared statement.

Despite information the Irvine Co. released about its coming resort in Newport Coast, one question persists: How much will it cost to stay there overnight? Two company executives, speaking Tuesday at a luncheon with the Commercial Real Estate Women Network, offered a ballpark answer: a lot. “It would be every bit as expensive as you would imagine it to be, I’m sure, but it would be just as memorable an experience,” said Chris Marsh, the company’s senior vice president of development, who added that the company had not yet decided on room prices.

The Irvine Co.'s planned luxury resort in Newport Beach will stimulate the city's economy and make it an attractive destination for wealthy travelers, city and business leaders said. On Tuesday, the Irvine Co. announced that it had appointed Ralph Grippo, an international veteran of hotel management, to oversee The Resort at Pelican Hill, which is under construction in Newport Coast and slated to open in fall 2008. The resort, the most lavish of its kind in Newport-Mesa, would feature a 204-room hotel, 128 villas, restaurants, a golf club and a spa. To many in Newport Beach, that amounts to a business boom.

The Resort at Pelican Hill is Condé Nast Traveler readers' top resort in the country, according to the results of the annual 2011 Reader's Choice Awards released last week. Pelican Hill, which celebrates its third anniversary Nov. 26, scored 96.3 in the annual awards that rank more than 1,120 top resorts and hotels worldwide. The Newport Coast resort is the only Southern California resort to earn a top national ranking in the history of the Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards, said resort spokeswoman Kate Starr.

Giuseppe Lama, a veteran of the luxury resort industry, has been named as the managing director of the Resort at Pelican Hill, the Irvine Co.’s lavish Newport Coast resort that is slated to open its first phase in November. Lama, who was born in Italy and got his start working at boutique hotels in Europe, will oversee the resort’s restaurant, catering, weddings and culinary operations as well as services for the rental villas. His tenure will begin this month, and the Irvine Co. plans to appoint a general manager for the resort soon.

NEWPORT BEACH — For as long as locals can remember, Newport Beach has been known as an easy Hollywood getaway. Celebrities such as Humphrey Bogart and Frank Sinatra were known to seek R&R in the coastal town. Lauren Bacall, former wife of Bogart and "Den Mother" of the Rat Pack, resides in Newport. Joey Bishop, Sinatra's famed comic sidekick, was tempted by the tranquility of the beach city, moving to Lido Isle and making that his residence of choice until he died in 2007.

Newport Dunes will host its 14th annual Lighting of the Bay ceremony at 6 p.m. Friday. The 100-acre waterfront resort will flip a giant switch to illuminate more than 50 electric Christmas trees in the waters of the bay. Santa Claus will preside over the lighting ceremony. Festivities will include more than 20 tons of artificial snow with slides for children, caroling and other live musical performances. Food from the resort’s Back Bay Cafe will also be available. For more information about the Lighting of the Bay ceremony, go to www.newportdunes.

Clarence Turner If we can fight our way through the blizzard of campaign rhetoric from the opposition to Measure L on the Nov. 2 ballot, a clear question emerges. What use of the Marinapark land will provide the greatest benefit to all the residents of Newport Beach? Before exploring that question, it is instructive to lay to rest one argument of the opposition to Measure L. To allow a resort, they claim, is a giveaway of public land to a private commercial interest.

Thomas Ryan has assembled the menu for seven luxury hotel openings, served wealthy diners in Europe, and cooked at the home of one of America’s most renowned chefs. But when the Irvine Co. recruited him to oversee the kitchen at its planned Resort at Pelican Hill, he still felt awed by the opportunity. Ryan, a veteran of the restaurant and hotel industries who trained in both New York and Munich, was announced Tuesday as the executive chef of the resort in Newport Coast.

Greg Encarnacion intends to tee off soon at the Irvine Co.’s new luxury golf club in Newport Coast. But it might take a few weeks and a few paychecks. Encarnacion, who worked in guest services at the Pelican Hill Golf Club before it closed for renovation two years ago, has bided his time ever since working — and playing — at the Oak Creek Golf Club in Irvine. He remembers the old Pelican Hill as one of the lushest, most challenging courses in the region, and he knows many of his customers do too; they’ve peppered him with questions about the revised golf club that the Irvine Co. intends to reopen Friday.

The design behind the Village of Cypress, the latest in the Irvine Co. village-concept communities in Irvine, is something between a comfortable neighborhood and resort-style living, company officials said. The first of 1,677 brand-new apartments and town homes in four communities - Murano, Umbria, Veneto and Cadenza - debuted earlier this month with 18 leases signed and other names added to a waiting list within the first two days. "There are so few new apartment homes being built and that, combined with the opportunity to live somewhere no one else has lived before, is part of why we're seeing so much enthusiasm here," said Erin Freeman, spokeswoman for the Newport Beach-based Irvine Co. Other reasons why this collection of apartment homes has garnered attention since opening to the market Feb. 11 include diversity in price points, diversity in floor plans, amenities and the village's easy proximity to local business centers and schools, she said.

What do you do when it turns out a wealthy investor can't actually come up with $174.5 million as promised? If you're Beverly Ray Parkhurst, who owns the landmark Balboa Bay Club and Resort in Newport Beach, you call off your planned sale of the company to Winston Chung of Hong Kong and entertain other offers, as the Times reported Tuesday. And with your financials improving, you may decide to hold off on a sale altogether for now, a top club official said. Chung, a battery and electric-vehicle entrepreneur, attracted considerable attention over the last two years by investing in Southern California specialty-vehicle makers and promising to establish a green transportation industry in the Southland.

NEWPORT COAST - Managing Director Giuseppe Lama still has the receipt from the Resort at Pelican Hill's very first customer and purchase: an early-morning cappuccino. Pelican Hill, owned by the Irvine Co., runs an occupancy rate of about 70% year to year, with highs spiking up to 90% in the summer months, but the travertine marble halls were quiet and the valet empty Nov. 26, 2008, when the resort first opened. "The vision hasn't changed or altered," Lama said of the 504-acre "Tuscan Village" resort which took three years of construction and opened during the peak of the recession.

The Resort at Pelican Hill is Condé Nast Traveler readers' top resort in the country, according to the results of the annual 2011 Reader's Choice Awards released last week. Pelican Hill, which celebrates its third anniversary Nov. 26, scored 96.3 in the annual awards that rank more than 1,120 top resorts and hotels worldwide. The Newport Coast resort is the only Southern California resort to earn a top national ranking in the history of the Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards, said resort spokeswoman Kate Starr.

The Resort at Pelican Hill was recognized as a AAA Five Diamond destination for the third consecutive year since opening in 2008, a resort spokeswoman announced. American Automobile Assn. diamond ratings are determined by an evaluation of a resort's level of service, decor and amenities, according to company spokeswoman Kate Starr. "As our third anniversary approaches later this fall, the entire Pelican Hill team is honored to be recognized with the AAA Five Diamond Award for the third time, Giuseppe Lama, resort managing director, said in a prepared statement.

Editor's note: This corrects the caption of the photo with ACT Today Executive Director Nancy Alspaugh-Jackson, "Young and Restless" actress Kate Linder and author Mara Brown. NEWPORT COAST — Mother's Day was celebrated a little early Monday with the third annual ACT Today!'s Mother's Day fundraiser at the Resort at Pelican Hill. ACT Today! is a nonprofit that provides resources to families affected by autism. Around 200 people gathered at the seaside resort to bid on auction items, listen to speakers and hear country singer Stephanie Quayle in an effort to raise money for autism while celebrating women.

The Resort at Pelican Hill is one of the 500 best hotels in the world, according to Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report. Pelican Hill in Newport Coast was described as "an exceptional hotel/resort of great individuality and distinction" in Andrew Harper's 500 Favorite Hotels in the World, according to a press release from the resort. The report is to be published in April. "We are honored to be among the 'best of the best' properties worldwide to receive Mr. Harper's prestigious recommendation," Pelican Hill Managing Director Giuseppe Lama said in a prepared statement.

John Wayne Airport has announced new terminal additions that will showcase what the county has to offer. The Orange County Board of Supervisors approved a lease with Paradies, which will operate "Beachfront News" in Terminal C. The resort-themed store will feature six surf cams that give passengers a peek at the beaches gracing the coast. Paradies will also operate the OC TravelMart in Terminal C, which will feature Irvine-based Diedrich Coffee. Besides Paradies, Hudson Group has also leased out storefronts at JWA and plans to incorporate O.C.-centric elements.

NEWPORT COAST — The Resort at Pelican Hill celebrated the first harvest of its olive trees Friday by pressing some organic virgin olive oil that it hopes to use in the resort kitchen and as bottled gifts for guests. The Newport Beach resort is dotted with 750 olive trees of Manzanillo and Sevillano varieties, the latter of which were raised in Northern California. The majority are around 40 years old, but the Sevillanos, of which Pelican Hill has 25, date back 100 years. Mike Ahmer, the resort's landscape manager, noticed fallen olives on the resort grounds and wondered what to do with them.

NEWPORT BEACH — For as long as locals can remember, Newport Beach has been known as an easy Hollywood getaway. Celebrities such as Humphrey Bogart and Frank Sinatra were known to seek R&R in the coastal town. Lauren Bacall, former wife of Bogart and "Den Mother" of the Rat Pack, resides in Newport. Joey Bishop, Sinatra's famed comic sidekick, was tempted by the tranquility of the beach city, moving to Lido Isle and making that his residence of choice until he died in 2007.