California Preservation Awards Sponsorship

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The 2026 Design Awards Event

A view from above of a circular, multi-level courtyard with ornate railings, white columns, red tile floors, and a central fountain surrounded by greenery. Spiral staircases connect the different levels.We're celebrating 24 award winning projects, as well as the Trustee's Awards for Excellence and four President's Awards at the Mission Inn in downtown Riverside. This special celebration is followed by a ticketed reception with food and drinks. Purchase your tickets before they sell out!

Hotel del Coronado: Full Building Renovation

Owner / Client
Michael Haslett – BRE Hotels & Resorts

Project Lead
Ron Smith – GSB Inc.

Architect
Jason Van Auker – WATG

Lead and Historic Architect
David Marshall – Heritage Architecture & Planning

Lead Engineer
Shane Noel – KPFF

Landscape Architect
Reid Katkov – Burton Studio

Contractor
Robert Lopez – Swinerton Builders

Specialty Sub-Contractor
Justin Warren – Spectra Company

Specialty Sub-Contractor
Ean Frank – EverGreene Architectural Arts

Hotel del Coronado: Full Building Renovation

Hotel del Coronado: Full Building Renovation is a winner for the 2026 Preservation Design Award in the category of Restoration. Award recipients are selected by a jury of top professionals in the fields of architecture, engineering, planning, and history, as well as renowned architecture critics and journalists. Tickets and sponsorship options are available at californiapreservation.org/programs/awards/.

About Hotel del Coronado: Full Building Renovation

The Victorian-era seaside Hotel del Coronado recently had its most extensive renovation ever. This $160 million project, the largest restoration project in the history of San Diego County, has returned the National Historic Landmark to its historic grandeur.

Following the award-winning renovation of the hotel’s front entrance and lobby in 2021, this sweeping project brought new life to 404 guestrooms, meeting rooms, central courtyard, and facades. Every inch of the hotel’s 415,000 square feet was renovated, with upgrades to structural, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and fire systems.

On the exterior, non-historic modifications were removed and hundreds of replica wood windows were installed. The building’s historic color palette was restored. The majestic wood-clad Crown and Coronet rooms were fully restored. The central courtyard now features a fountain recreating the lost original. Following this dramatic renovation, the Hotel del Coronado now more closely reflects its original 1888 charm than at any point in the past century.

Read more about the Preservation Design Awards
The historic white facade of the Hotel del Coronado is surrounded by palm trees and gardens, with an American flag flying above. Text announces a 2026 Preservation Design Award for full building renovation.
A large, historic white hotel with multiple balconies, a red-roofed turret, and a garden courtyard featuring a circular fountain, greenery, flowers, and a white pergola under a blue sky.
White multi-story building with large grid-patterned windows and balconies, viewed from a low angle against a clear blue sky.
A lush garden with tropical plants and flowers is set in front of a large, historic white hotel with red rooftops, balconies, and an American flag flying on top. Pathways and palm trees enhance the courtyard’s elegant atmosphere.
A lush garden with tropical plants and flowers is in front of a large, white, Victorian-style hotel with red rooftops, balconies, and an American flag on top. Paths and palm trees are visible in the courtyard.
A worker in a hard hat and safety vest restores a decorative ceiling mural featuring a large circular floral design. A close-up below shows the intricate, colorful flowers and patterns in the mural.
A large historic hotel with a red conical roof, multiple white balconies, and palm trees in front, set against a blue sky with people dining at outdoor tables on a patio.
A large, historic hotel with red roofs is illuminated by moonlight, reflecting on calm water. The sky is cloudy, and the moon is visible above the building. Text at the bottom reads Hotel del Coronado by Moonlight, Coronado, California.
A vintage postcard illustration of the Hotel del Coronado in Coronado, California, showing its large red-roofed buildings, palm trees, tennis courts, and nearby beach with a pier and sailboats in the water.
A large historic white hotel with red roofs, palm trees, and a circular driveway under a blue sky. Two people walk toward the entrance, and a white van is parked nearby.
Side-by-side view of a building before and after renovations; the left shows an older facade with enclosed balconies, while the right shows restored open balconies and fresh paint. A blue-and-white awning is at the bottom.
Two photos of a wood-paneled room; the top shows solid wooden walls, while the bottom shows the same area after renovations, featuring added glass doors and windows. Both are labeled “BEFORE” and “AFTER.”.
A spacious, ornate hall with a high, wooden vaulted ceiling, large chandeliers, decorative wall details, and tall windows letting in natural light. The floor is mostly empty.

Community Importance

The history of the City of Coronado will always be tied to the Hotel del Coronado. It is impossible to visit Coronado without seeing The Del, the largest building in the city and the second largest wooden building in the United States.

The founders of the Hotel del Coronado, Elisha Babcock, Jr. and Hampton L. Story, were so inspired by the undisturbed beauty of Coronado in 1885 that they decided to purchase the entire island (actually a peninsula) for $110,000 and construct a grand hotel that would be ‘the talk of the western world.’ After choosing a beachfront site for the hotel the men created hundreds of parcels for sale and laid out and named all of Coronado’s streets.

The Hotel del Coronado is where the community of Coronado regularly eats their meals, visits the beach, and attends wedding and proms. The Del’s holiday light shows and iconic lobby Christmas tree are must see displays every Winter season. The love and pride that the citizens of Coronado have for their National Historic Landmark hotel cannot be overstated.

Now that the hotel has been fully restored, locals and visitors have returned to tour the gardens, eat fine food, relax in rocking chairs and take in the ocean breezes, just as they did in 1888.

About CPF and the Awards

Held in conjunction with CPF’s 2026 Annual Conference in Riverside, the 2026 Mission Inn Preservation Design Awards Ceremony and Reception will spotlight excellence in historic preservation in a setting that reflects the very spirit of the work being honored. This special evening brings together award recipients, conference participants, preservation leaders, and supporters from across California to celebrate outstanding preservation projects and leadership through the Preservation Design Awards and President’s Awards.

Founded in 1978, the California Preservation Foundation (CPF) is California’s statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection of historic places and cultural heritage. Through education, advocacy, and community-centered programs, CPF supports the people, projects, and policies that keep California’s historic resources vital and valued. We now support a national network of more than 36,000 members and supporters. Click here to learn how you can become a member.