History
The Carrick Hotel
We are thrilled to announce a transformation as we create a new hotel to be a part of the Bisbee community! Over the past year we have taken this historic Bisbee property and restored it to its grandeur and updated it for the modern traveler. All of the rooms have been upgraded, and we are promoting local artists with artwork throughout the property. We are so proud to be bringing back this historic property to welcome travelers to Bisbee!
In addition, Gym Club Suites has proudly changed its name to The Carrick. After years of mistaken inquiries assuming we were a fitness facility, we have redefined our hotel's identity. The old name lacked historical significance, tracing back to the YMCA's conversion into apartments in 1988 and its later transition into a hotel in 2007.
Carrick is a popular name in Ireland and one will find this property is similar to buildings found on Kildare Street in Dublin. Old Bisbee rests on the enduring Pinal Schist, a bedrock foundation formed 1.7 billion years ago. This alignment led us to believe the name was not only fitting but deeply resonant, as "Carrick" translates to "rock solid" in Irish, symbolizing steadfastness.
As we undergo this transformation, we honor Bisbee's rich history and pay homage to the thousands of Irish immigrant miners, representing a unique historical connection from Mexico to Ireland and all around the world. Our renaming stands as a heartfelt tribute to the perseverance of our diverse melting pot of people that have formed this rock-solid community that Bisbee has become.
Join us at our captivating boutique hotel, The Carrick, and explore Bisbee's enchanting facets. Your stay promises history, charm, and the allure of a bygone era.
Brad, General Manager with Carrick, Owner
Currently owned by Carrick Sears, a resident of Phoenix, one might wonder why he owns a hotel in such a small Southeastern Arizona town! Well Carrick is no stranger to small towns. In fact, he grew up in Northern California on a cattle ranch just south of the Oregon border near Yreka, California.
In June of 2015, Carrick visited Bisbee for the first time and fell in love with the charming town. On his 3rd visit in September 2021 he considered investing in town and shortly thereafter the Gym Club Suites was up for sale. Learning the property had been built out as apartments in 1988 and then furnished as a hotel in 2007, Carrick quickly became very interested in the property. With a vast multifamily background and short term rental experience, Carrick was confident if the hotel dream wasn’t profitable, the building could function as an apartment complex as a backup plan.
Carrick purchased the hotel in July 2022 and began a rigorous remodel. From new flooring, new plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, paint, baseboards, toilets and some countertops were replaced. New furniture, kitchen furnishings, mattresses and artwork were brought in as well to bring this property up to today’s hospitality standards.
While the property had so much character and charm, it was outdated and in need of major remodeling and refurnishing. The previous owner, Angel Hsiung, had purchased the property in 2007, and furnished all the rooms to turn the property from apartments to short term rentals. Carrick bought the property with worn out carpets and outdated furniture and a lot of deferred maintenance. He wanted to maintain, restore, and showcase what this great property was all about as when it was built in 1903, while offering modern conveniences.
Our Team
Carrick and his partner, Edson
Prior to purchasing the hotel, Carrick knew he wanted to rename it and recalls the first tour he had with the previous owner, Angel. There was a phone call to Angel where a customer was asking what the hours were of the gym to work out. With the name Gym Club Suites, the caller thought the property was an actual gym. It wasn’t a gym and didn’t even have a gym space for guests to work out. Since the property was a gym back in the day, the hotel now provides complimentary gym membership to all guests at the nearby Jaguar Fitness Elite in downtown Bisbee next to the Safeway (as the property doesn’t have one on-site, due to lack of space.) In the summer of 2023 it was re-named to The Carrick.
We invite you to come and experience this charming, boutique hotel and all the enchantments of this historic mining town we call Bisbee!
While there are almost 52 reasons a year to come to Bisbee, we love to celebrate all the festivals and holidays here at The Carrick. Here are some pictures of various holidays and occasions throughout the year.
Team Christmas Dinner
Cinco De Mayo Party
Pride Party
The History Of Our Building
The Building and Her Architects:
Frank E Perkins was a Copper Queen consolidated mining co. in-house architect. He designed many of the companies buildings, including the Copper Queen Gymnasium.
A glance of The Carrick building would give one a feeling that it is tall and handsome one reason maybe the windows the windows on each level get smaller as they get higher. This gives the illusion
that the building is taller notice also that the design of the windows are different on each level .
Mr. Perkins also designed the cornice on top of the building, according to the Bisbee daily review. the cornice to be erected will be the most elaborate in the south west the cornice moldings extend 3 feet out from the building and are made of metal.
Mr. Perkins resigned a month before the Y.M.C.A. was completed. He was replaced by architect Mr. H a Hearst, Mr. Hearst brother later, became Director of the copper queen gymnasium.
In 1908 Mr. Perkins won first prize for his design for the proposed capital building for San Juan Puerto Rico due to various reasons only part of his winning design was incorporated when the capitol building was built more than a decade later.
Garth Collier, a San Francisco architect developer asked his friend.
“Where in Europe was it?” when he was first shown a picture of Bisbee. Within weeks Collier, and a partner, Greg craft, the other half of Collier craft development Co., had laid plans to turn Bisbee into a resort, retirement, and tourist town. Collier craft and its investors have bought five of the town's once quaint, but now decaying buildings planning to turn them into apartments, renting for $350-$600 a month.
(The ledger, 1984.03.16.)
The Y.M.C.A. one of those five buildings. They filled in the swimming pool, gutted the interior and transformed it into a 17 unit apartment building; added an elevator, a wood deck on the side of the gymnasium and several roof decks. over 25 years since the renovation we still get Oohs and wows from our guests. The spacious apartments are open and airy, giving a sense of joy and well-being.
Mr. Collier, still has a practice, Collier and Associates in San Francisco.
This is the original ceiling of the Gymnasium - Suite 205 and also visible in Suites 203, 204 and 303.
The 94" tall windows in Suite 202
let in a lot of light as well as views
of Old Bisbee.
Suite 102, one of many units with lofts taking advantage of the high ceilings of the building.
This photo shows some of the more noticeable improvements Mr. Collier made to the building:
1. The window trims were painted white to liven the look of the building.
2. The added deck to the side of the gymnasium (the two-story building in the back gives more outdoor space for the occupants to enjoy the beautiful weather of Bisbee. Nine out of 17 apartments in The Carrick have some sort of private outdoor space.
3. A "roof" deck is created by cutting a hole in the roof- the big open area between the skylights on the back building. There are a total of four “roof” decks in the building.
4. This is a good photo to compare the sizes and designs of the windows on all three levels.
The Lives of the YMCA Building
First Life: 1903 to 1973 The YMCA/Rec Center of Bisbee
Second Life: 1985-2007 The Gym Club Apartments
Third Life: 2007 to 2022 The Gym Club Suites, furnished rooms for nightly rentals.
Fourth Life: 2022+ New ownership, Hotel renovated, Renamed The Carrick.
Other interesting facts about the The Carrick building:
1. It was "built upon a rock"', as a Wiseman would. One can actually see the rock from the basement.
2. The exterior walls are made of tour layers of red bricks. It is very well insulated. It's also why we need seven wireless internet extenders.
3. In 1914. the decision was made to add a swimming pool in the basement of the YMCA because too many boys had drowned swimming in local watering holes. The pool was excavated by hand. It measured approx. 20'x36'.
Basement:
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Bowling alley with four lanes
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Bathrooms and shower.
First floor:
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Lobby public reception hall.
Second floor:
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Reading room with newspaper magazines
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Smoking room and desks for men.
Third floor:
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Ping-pong, pool and billiard rooms
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Room for cards, checkers and chess
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Room for boxing and wrestling.
Gymnasium
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Equipped with every modern apparatus.
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Basketball
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Rowing machines,
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Ladders and bars,
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Trapeze
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Punching bag,
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Dumbbells,
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Swing clubs
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Piano
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Above the gym was a gallery for observers.
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Shuffleboard room for men shuffleboard room for boys under 16
The Copper Queen Gymnasium 1903
The Copper queen gymnasium, 1903
Built by the copper queen consolidated mining company. (Owned by the Phelps Dodge community) for the citizens of Bisbee to enjoy.
-A place for the men to smoke and read
-A place for dances and cultural events such as concerts.
-A place for boys and girls to play checkers, pool, and ping-pong
-A gymnasium for sports and exercise
The cost of the project was $40,000. $30,000 was spent on the building and $10,000 on the athletic recreation apparatus.
Membership to the gymnasium was limited to 300. After the grand opening, the building was turned over to the Board of Directors. The Copper queen gymnasium was nicknamed the gymnasium club.
In December 201905, the Bisbee gymnasium club and all equipment was formally transferred by a long-term lease at a minimal some to the YMCA. The only changes were no games on Sundays and Sunday afternoon services of religious character by September 1906 membership of the gymnasium club grew from 300 to 600 members under the directors of the YMCA. Phelps Dodge company decided to enlarge the building by adding 900 ft.² where the original entrance was. The top of the addition was left open as a porch accessible only from second floor. The men’s reading room and smoking room removed to the added space in the basement. Those rooms became classrooms for vocational training, such as bookkeeping business penmanship, mechanical, drawing, and first aid. The main entrance was moved to the west side of the building, where it remains to this day.
In June 1909 a rifle range was added where the bowling alley hall was when it was too hot in the summer to bowl. In 1914 a swimming pool was added in the basement to give boys a safer place to swim.
Pictured above the south west corner of the swimming pool 20‘ x 36‘ The top right playing volleyball in the gymnasium below playing snooker at main floor lobby and an ad of the YMCA in Bisbee chamber publication dated 1920 photos inside Jim club or taken by Arnold Figueroa Director of rec center in the 60s
