Selling Sunset: Alanna Gold says owning a small desert town is challenging

Today, Pioneertown is a community of around 420 residents and is home to several unique businesses, including Moroccan company Sukie Modern, which specializes in rugs, textiles and home accessories, and Xēba Botánica, a personal care brand known for its handcrafted, plant-based skin care products.

Located about 41 minutes north of Palm Springs, Pioneertown has become a popular destination for filmmakers and visitors wanting to experience the authentic Wild West.

In Season 8 of the riveting Netflix hit series “Selling Sunset,” Gold, making her debut as one of the newest members of the Los Angeles-based real estate firm Oppenheim Group, takes some of her colleagues to the desert town she owns.

The group visits Gold's modern vacation home, which she purchased for $650,000 in 2020. Dressed in full Western attire, they also take a tour of the town and take part in themed activities such as lassoing.

Ahead of the show's premiere, Gold spoke to Business Insider about her passion for Pioneertown and the challenges that come with owning an entire town.

Here are four challenges she faced.

1. Revitalization

In a world where there's a Starbucks on every corner and a mall down the street, cities that retain their small-town charm are becoming increasingly popular.

Gold said people love Pioneertown for its authentic Western feel. With its wooden houses, small mom-and-pop shops and dirt roads, it evokes a sense of nostalgia in residents and visitors that is hard to find in the modern world.

Therefore, it is crucial that the town stays true to its roots. However, Gold told BI that it is a challenge to preserve Pioneertown's unique character while trying to revitalize its image.

“Obviously there are a lot of people who live there who care deeply about Pioneertown and its history,” she said. “Revitalizing the town in a way that makes the community happy is a big task for us.”

2. Gain trust

Gold grew up in a small town outside Toronto and moved to California after a successful modeling career that took her to countries like Japan and Paris.

She and her husband Adam Gold, who works in the hotel and entertainment industry, live primarily in Los Angeles.

Although the couple has no family ties to Pioneertown, they had their first date there and celebrated their wedding ceremony in 2022 at this unique location.

“I always loved coming there when we were there, and early on we knew we wanted to be part of the community,” she said. “When we heard Pioneertown was for sale, we jumped at the opportunity to not only deepen our ties to the community, but also preserve a piece of history.”

As newcomers to the community, an important goal for the Golds was to gain the trust of longtime residents.

“As a new owner, there are always questions,” she said. “We've focused on gaining trust and showing that our plans for Pioneertown are good for the community.”

3. Maintenance

Maintaining a city can be costly and difficult, especially in cities with older or underdeveloped infrastructure.

Gold said maintaining sanitation facilities, managing general building maintenance and restoration, and road and trail maintenance are ongoing tasks in Pioneertown.

“There's always something that might go wrong,” she said. “You fix something and it breaks again.”

Gold said grading the dirt roads in Pioneertown is one of the biggest maintenance challenges.

“When it rains, the dividers on the street are practically washed away,” she said. “We need to make sure that the streets are always flat so that the city is pleasant for residents and visitors.”

4. Growth

In recent years, a wave of homebuyers and renters looking for more spacious and affordable housing options has sparked a population boom in many small towns in the South and West.

This trend has attracted companies looking to capitalize on rising demand, leading to increased development in these once quiet communities.

While this has brought new life and prosperity to many of these cities, it also brings challenges, such as strains on local infrastructure and potential changes in community dynamics.

It is a situation that Gold is very aware of.

“Pioneertown and Joshua Tree boomed after COVID,” she said. “A lot of people wanted to escape the city and enjoy a slower pace of life, so they started moving away and buying homes and land.”

Some residents fear that zoning regulations introduced by San Bernardino County in 2020 could ultimately change the character of the city.

The San Bernardino Sun reported in July 2023 that these new zoning regulations may result in Mane Street being reclassified as a “rural desert commercial district,” a designation that would replace previous restrictions on commercial activity.

“If Mane Street becomes something like this – a small shopping center – then the surrounding community, the people who have lived here with their horses for decades, will just go down the drain,” Curt Sautter, owner of the Pioneertown Film Museum, told The Sun at the time.

However, Gold said she does not expect Pioneertown to fall victim to rapid growth.

“I don't see a boom or gentrification here like in other cities,” she said. “The area has limited capacity for new housing, gas lines and wells, so growth is very limited.”

Netflix’s “Selling Sunset” is now streaming.