The Pasadena Estates field office at 7204 Central Avenue is a historic building in Old Pasadena, a few blocks south of the Jungle. Though I've driven and walked past the building maybe a hundred times, it wasn't until a few months ago ‒ when Matt of Old Pasadena sent me this photograph ‒ that I became aware of the building's history. It was here that the planning, sales, and daily operations and maintenance of the Pasadena-on-the-Gulf development were administered.
It's just a few blocks from the Sunset Hotel (built in 1916), which is currently doing business as the Crystal Bay Inn.
Almost 100 years ago, in March 1922, Jack Taylor ignited a building and land sales boom in Pasadena and in the Jungle. Taylor bought 1800 acres (2.81 square miles) of land south of the Jungle in 1922 and renamed the area Pasadena-on-the-Gulf. The territory included Davista and the west side of Gulfport.
The building's exterior is relatively unchanged, except for the landscaping. The entrance has been moved to the side of the building. It is now Alésia Restaurant, a French-Vietnamese family kitchen. The neighborhood has changed, too ‒ a cannabis store is in the strip mall next door.
Inside Alésia Restaurant; St. Pete’s charming French-Vietnamese family kitchen
The official website (with some pictures of the interior) is www.alesiarestaurant.com
Surprisingly, neither the review nor the website make any mention of the building's history.
Here is a colorized version of the 1925 photo:
