Monterra® - The Pinnacle of the Monterey Peninsula

Monterra®…in the News

SPACE magazine
January 2006

Monterra® Ranch Estates

By Anna Curtis

An enchanting community created by the Mills Brothers expressly, for those desiring luxuriant living matched only, by their love of open spaces.

High above the rolling coastline of the Pacific Ocean, amidst meadows and oak trees, sits the private community of Monterra®. The exclusive neighborhood rests atop 2,000 acres of countryside, beckoning those in search of both a home and a retreat.

Basil Mills and his brother, Roger, first developed Monterra® in the early '90s. Produce farmers by trade, they built their empire on a cauliflower operation in the late '50s and steadily cultivated it into a thriving award-winning business. Their modest Midwest upbringing never bowed to the trappings of wild success, leaving their down-home demeanor and kind gentility firmly intact. To the Mills brothers, family bonds are the dynamic thread woven into every facet of life, particularly at Monterra®, where many of their relatives work and live. "This is where your journey ends, discovery begins and life is lived well in a timeless place," Roger says.

The 168-eslate community is carefully designed to preserve the integrity of the land it occupies-from solar energy generators on the clubhouse roof to on-site water treatment facilities specially reserved for its residents. California Buckeye trees from Monterra's® own nursery are offered as additional landscaping options, and stones excavated during the building process are saved and incorporated into striking interior/exterior finishes. The preservation of this landscape is never far from the minds of its gracious inhabitants-as is evident by Monterra's® pledge to homeowners that it will never further develop it.

"The natural setting of unparalleled beauty is an inspired choice for a custom home." Mills says. Whether residents purchase one of the existing sprawling manors, or collaborate with the Monterra® design team to craft a home of their own, each estate blends seamlessly with the natural backdrop. Monterra's® distinctive homes reflect Carmel's history and are influenced by Spanish Colonial, French country and rural Mediterranean architectural styles.

Even Clint Eastwood was in awe of the land encompassing Monterra®. He bought a 2,000-acre portion of it and named the development Tehama, the American Indian word for "abundance of nature." Today, the two communities are linked by a private clubhouse, world-class fitness facilities and an invitation-only, 18-hole golf course sharply fashioned by top designer Jay Moorish. Eastwood, too, shares the Mills' reverence for the land and vision for its future: Tehama's limited development will forever leave 85 percent of the land to be unaltered.

Just outside the guard gates of Monterra®, a private aviation terminal is serviced by Million Air Monterey. A few miles farther down a winding road are the cities of Monterey, Carmel and Pebble Beach, with a mixlure of award-winning restaurants, galleries, wineries and nightclubs.

'The Masters of Food & Wine', sponsored in part by Monterra®, is a golden opportunity to see this beautiful space. The 20th annual event will be held February 16 - 19, 2006. See www.mfandw.com or call 800-401-1009 to order tickets.

Acclaimed writer John Steinbeck, an area native, once said, "Many a trip continues long after movement in lime and space have ceased." So then, with blacktail deer and gray foxes roaming sunlit canyons, and the scent of honeysuckle and California buttercups greeting the senses, one can only conclude he was talking of Monterra®.

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