La Casa Pacifica

La Casa Pacifica is a mansion located in the Cottons Point Estates gated community on the beaches of San Clemente, California, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The home is known as President Richard Nixon's Western White House, used while working away from the official presidential residence, the White House. The large, Spanish-style, California Mission Revival mansion was modeled after a country home in San Sebastian, Spain and was designed by architect Carl Lindbom. Built in the early days of San Clemente by one of founder Ole Hanson's partners, the estate was originally owned by Hamilton H. Cotton, a Democratic Party backer who entertained such party luminaries as President Franklin D. Roosevelt. By the time he took office in 1969, President Nixon asked a young campaign aide to search the coast of Southern California for a presidential hideaway. The aide found the home in then-little known San Clemente and Nixon bought the estate in 1969 from Cotton's widow. Nixon dubbed the home "La Casa Pacifica," but it was soon nicknamed "The Western White House" by the press and himself; the latter became the term of subsequent similar presidential homes. The home is currently a private residence and closed to the public! However, its legacy as a presidential retreat is still used as a calling card for the city of San Clemente. The road adjacent to Interstate 5 in the area is called Avenida del Presidente (Avenue of the President). The estate sits above one of the West Coast's major surfing spots, just north of Upper Trestles, and just north of San Onofre State Park. In December 2009, the city of San Clemente passed a "Historical Property Preservation Agreement" to restore, improve, and preserve this historical building.