Wrigley Mansion Joined the Arizona Biltmore, and Kept Its Private-Club Front Door
November 12, 2026
November 12, 2026
From the 100-foot knoll where William Wrigley Jr. built a 50th anniversary gift for his wife, Ada, in 1931, you can look straight down on the resort he helped establish two years earlier. For most of the past century, the house on the hill and the resort below were separate businesses. Since October 1, 2026, they have shared an owner again. The Mansion's private-club front door didn't change with the sale.
The Phoenix Business Journal, as republished by KTAR, reported that the Arizona Biltmore's ownership group bought the Mansion on October 1. That group is Henderson Park, a joint venture with Western & Southern Financial Group, and funds managed by Hamilton Lane, South Street Partners and Pyramid Global Hospitality. Maricopa County real estate records put the price at $17 million. The seller was Jamie Hormel and the Hormel family, who had owned the property since 1992. That year Geordie Hormel bought it to keep it from being demolished. The Arizona Republic summed it up in one line: "Two neighboring landmarks with a shared history now share an owner."
Pyramid Global Hospitality now runs both properties. The visible change so far is how the Mansion presents itself. Wrigley Mansion's homepage now describes it as "part of the Arizona Biltmore resort experience" and points visitors down the hill to the resort's 39 acres and seven pools. In the joint announcement on PRWeb, Arizona Biltmore managing director Michael Hoffmann described the goal like this:
"There are very few opportunities in hospitality to bring two landmarks together that have been connected to one another from the very beginning."
That same release frames the Mansion's restaurants as a culinary addition to the resort. Those restaurants are also where the club rule applies.
According to Wrigley Mansion's membership page, the Mansion operates as a private club. The page says the Hormels set the price low because they wanted to share the house's history, and membership starts at $20 a year.
The membership page reads the same after the sale as before:
At Christopher's the rule is spelled out precisely. The restaurant's FAQ says at least one person in your dinner party must be a Wrigley Mansion member. One $20 membership covers a table of friends, so the practical step is for whoever books the table to join first.
The restaurants in the house are the ones the Hormel years built up. Christopher's, led by James Beard Award-winning chef Christopher Gross, has a retractable roof and serves modern tasting menus. The Mansion's site still lists Gross as Chef/Director. The MICHELIN Guide's American Southwest selection, announced August 26, 2026, named Christopher Gross at Wrigley Mansion a Recommended restaurant. The sale announcement counts it among 12 Recommended restaurants in Arizona.
| Space | What it is | When |
|---|---|---|
| Geordie's Restaurant & Lounge | Seasonal menu, wine program, Valley views | Tuesday to Saturday, 5 to 10 p.m. last seating; lounge opens 4:30 p.m. |
| Christopher's | Tasting menus from Christopher Gross; at least one member per party | Tuesday to Saturday, 5 to 10 p.m.; closed Sunday and Monday |
| Jamie's Wine Bar | Small plates and rotating wines by the glass in the original library | Check with the Mansion |
| Hormel Jazz Series | Live jazz in the living room; cocktails and food available for purchase | Thursdays, 7 to 8:30 p.m. |
| Guided tours | 45 to 60 minutes through the house | Wednesday to Saturday, 2 and 3:15 p.m.; $25 per person |
Tours book through OpenTable. It's an easy afternoon to plan when you have guests in town who want to see the house without staying for dinner.
The jazz series is where the Mansion's earlier era is easiest to hear. The series page recalls that longtime members remember Geordie Hormel playing the antique Steinway during Sunday brunch. Jamie Hormel later brought live jazz back to the house on Thursday nights, and Geri Hormel, Geordie and Jamie's daughter, sometimes joins as a guest vocalist. The series still carries the family's name under the new owners, and the posted lineup runs through the end of the year:
The Mansion strongly recommends reservations. If you arrive without one, let the hostess know you'd like a table if one opens up. Raul Yanez's trio plays from 7 to 8:30 p.m. this Thursday, November 12.
On Thanksgiving, Geordie's is serving a four-course dinner from noon to 6 p.m. It costs $175++ per adult and $45++ for children ages 5 to 12, and children 4 and under eat free. Down the hill, reservations had already closed by November 6 for the resort's Gold Room Thanksgiving brunch, which runs the same day from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. That leaves the Mansion's table as the Thanksgiving option still listed between the two properties.
With one operator over both properties, the resort's season is now the other half of a single schedule. The Arizona Biltmore's holiday page lists these dates:
With the Nutcracker Tea already sold out, the Teddy Bear Tea is the one to book early. For neighbors who want a more civic evening at the resort, the Biltmore Area Partnership is holding its holiday celebration and annual meeting on Tuesday, December 8, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Wright Bar. Tickets are $50.
Put the two calendars together and one stretch of December makes a full few days out from Arizona Biltmore Estates. On Thursday, December 10, Nicole Pesce's trio plays up the hill at seven. That Saturday, December 12, the resort has a gingerbread class and Sparkle & Stroll. If you're going to the Mansion, the $20 membership needs to be in place before you get there.
I've spent four decades watching the Wrigley Mansion and the Arizona Biltmore anchor this corner of Phoenix. If the reunion has you wondering what it means for the homes around them, I'd be glad to talk it through. Sue Shapiro is here when you're ready. Let's Connect.
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