La Casa de Maria is a unique retreat in the Montecito foothills. Serving all ages, spiritual paths, and noble causes.
La Casa de Maria is rebuilding after the 2018 debris flow, with the help of community stewards who cherish its innate value to spark renewal and growth for those who visit.
key features for revitalization
• Remake retreat and meeting spaces
• Create 30 new guest rooms to replace lost retreat space
• Repair and renovate 40 guest rooms that were damaged
• Update gardens and create a perimeter quiet zone
• Design new buildings with reverence to 1930s Spanish revival architecture
• Reconnect people with the land as a spiritual practice
• Regenerate soils and reinvigorate organic farm
• Restore riparian habitat by San Ysidro Creek
goals for the land
Rebuild
cottages for guests
Renew
chapel, gathering spaces
(9 large buildings were lost)
Refresh
create a centralized site plan focused on connecting people
Reconnect with Nature
localize buildings to respect
San Ysidro Creek and impacts
from 2018 Debris Flow
history
La Casa de Maria began life as a private estate that in 1943 became a place to train novice nuns by the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. In the 1950s, the Sisters expanded their ministry to include a retreat center for couples. The Sisters founded La Casa de Maria in 1955. During the turbulent 1960s, conflicts with the Cardinal, Archbishop of Los Angeles led the Sisters to fight for their beliefs, rebel against constraints that kept them from modernizing, and form the Immaculate Heart Community {IHC).
• 1970 Community-based, interfaith retreats begin
• 1990s Programs expand to health, healing, and social justice
• 1990s Gang peace circle & accords made
• 2000 Congressional Faith & Politics retreats
• 2005 La Casa celebrated its 50th anniversary
• 2016 Center for Non-Profit Renewal begins
• 2018 Debris Flow
• 2020 IHC design and planning studies
• 2024 La Casa de Maria campus revitalization begins
