Autumn is a fabulous time of year and October hops along with harvest festivals, pumpkin patches and corn mazes for the whole family. The climax at the end of October is, of course, Halloween, the second highest grossing holiday of the year.
Insider’s tip: Even though there are numerous crosswalk personnel, drivers be AWARE and EXTRA careful when driving along Lighthouse that Saturday!
For adults, there aren’t that many events being promoted at press time, but here’s an insider’s tip: Keep an eye out for event postings in the Monterey County Weekly and the Go! Calendar inside the Monterey Herald newspapers.
Landlords can learn a valuable lesson from White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel this month. The lesson is, “Be sure of your own plans before you lease your house to someone else.” Emanuel leased his Chicago home to Rob Halpin when he moved to Washington. The lease came due on September 1 of this year, and Emanuel renewed the lease with Halpin on that date. Six days later, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley announced that he would not run for re-election. Now, Emanuel wants to return to Chicago to run for mayor, and he would like to re-occupy his own home. But his tenant, Halpin, has refused to vacate, according to Michael Sneed of the Chicago Sun Times. Sneed further reported that Emanuel even asked Halpin if he could just move into the basement, but Halpin said no. So if Emanuel wants to move back to Chicago, he will have to call his property manager to find him a property to rent!
It sounds funny to read this story, but we have seen it happen many times. We consult landlords for whom we manage to confirm that it is their desire that we re-rent a vacant property or renew an existing lease. The landlord gives us the green light, we do the job we were hired to do, and before the ink is dry, the landlord has a change of plans, much like Rahm Emanuel in the example above.
We realize it is not always possible to foresee what lies ahead, and that “life is what happens when we are making other plans.” But we do urge you to think carefully about what could possibly happen that could cause you to wish that tenant (who pays his rent faithfully and on time every month) was not there. Is it at all conceivable that you might want to or need to move back into your property before a lease that we are about to execute might expire? Is it possible that you might want to sell the property? If yes, then let’s wait to rent it (or re-rent it) until you can decide for sure. Or in the case of a lease renewal, let’s do it on a month-to-month basis. You may feel that you don’t want to lose income while you decide what to do, or you may not want the insecurity of a month-to-month arrangement. But it’s difficult to have your cake and eat it, too, so to speak. You can’t have both the security of a lease AND the flexibility to have your property back at any time you want.
So think carefully, and if you need help deciding what to do at any time, call your property manager. We will help you weigh your options.
THE MONARCH BUTTERFLIES OF PACIFIC GROVE
Every fall, thousands of monarch butterflies appear at the Monarch Grove Sanctuary. They look like brown leaves on the trees in the grove, until they begin to spread their wings and flutter in and out of the tree branches when the sun comes out. The Monarch Grove Sanctuary is studded with Monterey pines and eucalyptus trees, and the temperature remains moderate all winter, giving the butterflies reason to return year after year. We look forward to their return, as we look forward to the return of many of our loyal customers to Monterey Bay Property Management, who elect to, like the butterflies, spend the winter in a temperate climate. If you are thinking that the Monterey Peninsula would be a great place to spend the winter, you would be thinking correctly! And just as we are honored each year to host the Monarch butterflies as our guests, we are honored to have you. Bring nothing but your clothes and your groceries to a fully-furnished and equipped vacation rental home where you can not only enjoy the return of the Monarchs, but all the beauty of “the most felicitous meeting of land and sea in creation (Robert Louis Stevenson).”
WHERE TO SEE THE BUTTERFLIES
From mid-October to mid-February, you can see clusters of monarch butterflies at the Monarch Grove Sanctuary at 1073 Lighthouse Avenue. The entrance is just off Lighthouse Avenue, and the park is open from sunrise to sundown. Best of all, it is free! The best time to see the butterflies is between noon to 3:00 p.m., as that is the time when the sun is shining brightly on the trees. You should find that a docent is always on duty when the park is open.
Should you arrive on the Monterey Peninsula in early October, you can be a part of Pacific Grove’s celebration of the monarchs’ arrival. The Butterfly Parade, featuring local school children dressed in butterfly wings.
The annual Cherry’s Jubilee, another great car weekend, will be held on the Monterey Peninsula on September 8 – 12, 2010. Venues 
include Monterey, Pacific Grove, Salinas, and the Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca. The event kicks off on Wednesday, September 8th, at Oldtown in Salinas, at the Passport to Cherry’s. Passport to Cherry’s is a hometown party for the whole family. It is a strolling food tasting event through charming Oldtown Salinas with over a dozen participating restaurants and great entertainment.
On Thursday and Friday, September 9th and 10th, enjoy the Monterey Waterfront. Show N’ Shine will be from 8 am to 11 pm on the wharf waterfront lot and on Alvarado Street, where spectators can come and view cherry cars and trucks. Restaurants and entertainment will just be steps away. Also on Thursday, Otis Auto Sales welcomes all to the Nostalgic Nights Show & Shine Official VIP kick off party for Cherry’s Jubilee from 9am until 9pm on the corner of Figueroa and Del Monte Avenue, with plenty of food and 
vendors, including a DJ spinning those oldies but goodies that will have you singing and dancing in the street (parking lot).
Friday night there will be a cruise through downtown Monterey and the wharf waterfront from 5:00p.m. To 9:00 p.m. The cruise will head out of the wharf parking area, south on Figueroa Street and turn right on Pearl Street; it will go right again onto Alvarado and proceed through the wharf parking lot. Spectators are free. Friday night, September 10th, you may enjoy 
dancing under the stars, as Fiesta Italia presents The Joe Sarino Band, one of the most popular dance bands in Northern California. From 7:00pm to 10:00pm at the Custom House Plaza in downtown Monterey, there is no admission charge. All of your favorite Italian foods and drinks will be sold on the plaza.
Saturday and Sunday, things heat up at Mazda Laguna Seca Recreation and Raceway. Show N’ Shine for all categories will begin each morning at 8am. For a real adrenalin rush, you may want to consider Hot Laps, on the Mazda Raceway corkscrew. For $30, Hot Laps participants are given the thrill of riding in a Porsche driven by a seasoned driver on the famous Laguna Seca track. All of the cars are safety equipped and tested for track driving and the drivers are certified. Hot Laps are Saturday starting at 9:00 a.m. Also at the Raceway will be a food court, manufacturer’s midway, car sale area, sports bar and official Cherry’s Jubilee memorabilia for sale as well.
Cherry’s Jubilee will also be in Pacific Grove for Saturday’s Show and Shine. Cherry’s Jubilee participants will cruise the shoreline and 
charming, cottage-lined streets of this Victorian-era resort town and park their pride and joy on Lighthouse Avenue in downtown PG. Local restaurants and other downtown businesses invite you to enjoy a relaxed, Saturday afternoon experience with your family and friends.
Cannery Row is Cherry’s destination on Saturday night starting at 5pm, Cherry’s cars will be parked on Cannery Row from Drake Street to David Avenue and in the El Torito parking lot. Cannery Row will be closed to all traffic beginning at 3pm. There is plenty of food, fun, music and cars on the evening’s agenda, and “Restaurant Row” has something for every car lover. The pubs and clubs will be rockin’ with live music.
An exciting way to wind up the weekend is with the Cherry’s Jubilee Pancake Breakfast. Pancakes are tossed from a flatbed truck to the hungry crowd. Diners listen to oldies played by a DJ as they gobble up pancakes tossed hot off the griddle by their servers. Eat as many as you can catch or, if you are not the “Frisbee” type, you may serve yourself, buffet style. The pancake breakfast is followed by the awards ceremony.
Monterey Bay Property Management welcomes all Cherry’s Jubilee participants and spectators. If you need an accommodation with a garage for your special vehicle, please ask the reservation agent to insure that the house or condo you book includes that amenity.
The First Tee open returns to the Monterey Peninsula over Labor Day weekend, featuring the nation’s outstanding junior golfers and amateurs competing side-by-side with the PGA Champions Tour players. From a spectator’s point of view, it is one of the most entertaining of all golf events to observe. The skill of the senior players combined with the youthful enthusiasm of the juniors makes for a heart-warming formula, as one generation gently guides another. This enjoyable event will be played at Pebble Beach Golf Links and Del Monte Golf Course September 3rd to 5th. The First Tee is an organization dedicated to impacting the lives of young people by providing learning facilities and educational programs that promote character development and life-enhancing values through the game of golf. Monterey Bay Property Management has vacation rental housing available for First Tee Open participants, their families, and spectators.
by Jennifer Filzen
The Monterey Peninsula is a distinct wedding destination for many happy couples. If you, or someone you know is planning a wedding, we hope this blog will be helpful.
First, if you’ve not yet seen it, our very own Monterey Rentals website has a wedding page. We have found that many of the same people who are looking for a vacation rental through us are also looking for local wedding vendors. So, we got smart and developed a resource guide for our clients. We hope our wedding page proves useful for you and yours.
Second, if you’re booking a wedding here and you’re doing it during the high season–which is summer–know that room rates at B&Bs, hotels, and motels go up. Believe it or not, the most economical way to stay on the Monterey Peninsula is to stay at one of our lovely vacation rentals. If you rent a house, condo, or duplex and share the cost with others in your group, it makes it more affordable and fun. Your wedding friends and family will likely have a ball at the “party house” that they’re sharing with other guests. If they can have fun and save money at the same time, everyone wins!
Lastly, if you have questions about what to do, where to send your wedding guests, tours, etc., we have crafted our website to provide helpful information for you and yours. If you don’t find what you’re looking for on our site, try visiting the Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce site or the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Have fun planning for your big day!
