Castle from p 25 sio Carraro (who originally intended it to become a hotel), it was sold to meat-pack- ing magnate Edward Tovrea in the 1930s and became a home for his widow, Della, after his death a few years later. The city of Phoenix purchased Tovrea Castle and the surrounding property in 1993 and eventually refurbished the his- toric building. The society formed in 2011 and began holding tours a year later to help support the castle’s upkeep. “So there’s a lot of history behind the castle and people are just curious about it,” Zivic says. “People who’ve lived here for a very long time want to know more about it, like ‘What the heck is that thing out there? What’s inside?’ Other people around the world have heard about and are quite inter- ested in it also. But it’s mainly locals of all ages who’ve just seen it their whole life and want to know what’s going on there.” Zivic says tickets typically sell out in less than 10 minutes whenever they’ve been offered to the public. As a result, the society decided in 2020 to hold a lottery in- stead “in order to make things more fair.” Even then, there are limitations. Tours, which are led by a society docent and take approximately 75 minutes, only cover the castle’s first floor and basement, which in- clude its foyer, great room, and kitchen. Visitors will get to see plenty of vintage, Art Deco-style decor and furnishings through- out the rooms, as well as a video detailing what’s on the building’s upper floors. Zivic says it’s due to issues with the fire code (there aren’t sufficient exits upstairs, for in- stance) and also to cap the number of tours and visitors each year because of occu- pancy limits and to preserve the castle. “We could be doing tours 24/7 because of demand, but we don’t want to take this his- toric site that the city of Phoe- nix refurbished and run it into the ground with lots of people going through it,” she says. “We make sure that everybody gets a great tour and gets to see a lot when they’re here.” And if you’d like to be one of the lucky few to see Tovrea Castle this fall, here’s what in- volved with the lottery: Entries will be accepted via the soci- ety’s website until June 30. In addition to providing your name, email, and other per- sonal and contact info, you’ll be asked to select three possible tour dates on a Friday, Satur- day, or Sunday between Sep- tember and December and how many tickets (for up to four people) you’d like to pur- chase. In early July, Zivic says a computer will randomly select winners, who will then be con- Inside Tovrea Castle. New Times archives tacted by email with their tour date and time over the following weeks. You’ll have 72 hours to purchase tickets, which are $22 per person. (Kids 2 and under are free with a paid adult admission.) Tickets can only be purchased by those 18 or over and only one entry will be allowed per person. If any winners fail to respond in time or are unable to purchase tickets, another lottery entrant will be selected and contacted. “If things don’t work out, we reach out to the next people in line for that date and time to see if they’re interested in tour tickets,” she says. “So even if you’re not contacted right away, don’t lose hope. There’s always a chance. It does take a little time to finalize who’s getting the tickets.” If necessary, ticketholders can also cancel with 72 hours’ notice, which Zivic says has happened with previous tours. “People put in for a certain date and time and then realize, ‘Oh gosh, I have a chance to go on a last-minute cruise of a lifetime,’ or they end up having to work that day. Whatever the reason, they’re not able to take the tour that they were offered, so after they cancel, we’ll try finding someone else. It isn’t hard. So many people are interested.” 27 phoenixnewtimes.com | CONTENTS | FEEDBACK | OPINION | NEWS | FEATURE | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | PHOENIX NEW TIMES JUNE 24TH – JUNE 30TH, 2021
