The Historic Pitzer House and Garage

The Historic Pitzer House and Garage. . , This historic setting of the Pitzer House and Garage was preserved in the year 2000 by Sunrise Assisted Living as a major architectural landmark of the City of Claremont. Sunrise carefully restored the Pitzer House residence to serve as its regional office while integrating the Garage with the terraces and garden spaces of its new Assisted Living Facility. The fieldstone clad walls of the Garage were preserved, and a new open roof trellis outlines the shape of the original roof, which had deteriorated beyond repair., The Pitzer House and Garage were designed in 1912 by Pomona architect Robert H. Orr for Lee C. Pitzer and his wife Blanche, when the site was surrounded by citrus groves planted by the Pitzer Family. Lee Pitzer established himself as the pioneering first citrus producer in the northern region of Claremont, which long-time citrus growers had dismissed as unsuitable due to its sandy soil and cool climate., The Pitzers sold the house in 1950 to Maurice C. and Adele Pesirs, who owned the Claremont Nursery and also operated the lemon groves to the south of the house until the late 1970’s. John and Patricia Hodges purchased the house in 1984 as a location for Patricia’s business, Claremont Psychological Services. Sunrise Assisted Living acquired the property in 1999, recognizing the opportunity to secure and preserve this important historic building ensemble through its functional integration with the operation of a newly developed Assisted Living Facility on its periphery., The historic significance of the Pitzer House ensemble stems from the unique combination of the California bungalow style with the fieldstone construction characteristic of the structures in the area along the “foothill belt” of Los Angeles.