Mendocino Coast Properties - Irish Beach real estate, homes, lots, ranches, parcels, and other property for sale

Irish Beach was developed by Bill Moores in 1963 when he bought the Acquistapace sheep ranch to develop a beach get-away for inlanders everywhere. This handsome, generous and smart man arrived in Mendocino County with his young family in 1947. He came from Portland where he’d worked for Pope and Talbot, a large northwest lumber company, to start his own enterprise in Legget, which he named Hollow Tree Lumber Company. He and his partner prospered as did so many in the post World War II boom years. By 1962, when he sold Hollow Tree to a group of New York investors, Bill had mills in Ukiah (his headquarters), Cloverdale, Gualala and Anapolis.

When Bill bought the sheep ranch that became Irish Beach, no one had conceived of a second home development on the Coast. Irish Beach predates even Sea Ranch, and it was all inspired by the access to Manchester State Beach, an impressive stretch of dunes and driftwood that ends at the Garcia River which flows into the Pacific just below the Lighthouse bluff. The beach is still our claim to fame, our primary point of interest. Not to be overlooked however are the hilltop trails above Irish Beach and all the shore trails from Alder Creek to Manchester State Park and the KOA campground.

We’re still a pretty rural area, but we’re within 30 minutes of Gualala and Mendocino and only 15 minutes or less of Point Arena, a unique little town with its special cove, movie theater and cafes. Also it’s the closest place to replenish your gas tank. Over the hill from Elk is Anderson Valley, which is quickly becoming an important winery destination.

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Mr. Moores opened the first sales office in the little house across from the present sales location. Little triangular flags of florescent orange, yellow and red flapped from the rooftop above the entry, announcing the availability of second home lots. You could buy one for $2000. This was in 1966. In May, 1967, Bill Moores, at age 51, died in his Cessna Push Pull as he departed from the airstrip he shared with the Stornettas. The cause as determined by the FAA was vertigo. Since he was an instrument pilot, it seemed hard to believe, but no other credible ideas presented themselves. He frequently took off in the fog, flying off the bluff and up and out of it in seconds, but not on that sad day in May.

After his untimely death, Bill’s widow, Mickey carried on, eventually assisted by her sons, one who came to live at Irish Beach and one in Santa Rosa, and a daughter in Marin. Her second daughter took up residence in Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula. All have served as Directors of Mendocino Coast Properties. Mickey married again, a famous San Francisco bookseller by the name of Paul Elder, and the two of them joined the great cast of coastal characters that remain irreplaceable and greatly missed.

The original corporation, Mendocino Coast Properties, still operates. It still has some of the original lots left and more are being developed. Our website is mendocinocoastproperties.com. (mendocinocoastproperty.com takes you to Irish Beach Realty. Our business philosophies differ, and we’re just not the same.) Stay in touch with us. Keep an eye on our site. Our inventory is building and there’s always something new to tell you about.

In addition to lot sales, we occasionally build a spec house. We’re presently immersed in literature about sustainable building methods, building green and all the rest.) We know contractors up and down the Coast and can assist with building permits, project management and any other hearts desires for a coastal residence, which we hope you’ll decide will be at Irish Beach.

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