De Anza rehab will begin in July

The long-awaited rejuvenation of the long-closed De Anza Motor Lodge in Albuquerque will begin in a matter of weeks, reported the New Mexico Business Weekly today.

Several developers of the historic Route 66 property have come and gone. But the latest, Rob Dickson, reportedly has set a construction start for July with the $4.3 million project.

The newspaper said:

Dickson, the developer of the Lofts at Albuquerque High, is planning to convert the motel to 39 market-rate apartments. A Zuni jewelry store, a Route 66 visitor center and a cafe are part of the project. An outdoor swimming pool and clubhouse are also in the plans. Pavilion Construction will do the buildout, and Integrated Design and Architecture did the design.

According to the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program, S.D. Hambaugh, a tourist court operator from Tucson, Ariz.; and C.G. Wallace, a trader with the Zuni Indians, built De Anza Motor Lodge in 1939.

It closed during the 1990s, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

UPDATE 5/18/2012: Here’s a video report from KASA-TV in Albuquerque:

Overhaul of Route 66 motel set to begin: kasa.com

4 thoughts on “De Anza rehab will begin in July

  1. Have we hit Peak Route 66 Visitor Centers yet? I wonder how many of them there are now? This one appears to be a developer using 66′ as a theme to sell condos, up to including a ‘visitors center’, as if it were a fancified apartment building lobby. I guess I’m too much a purist with the route, and to see it commodified as it is now seems to take away the real meaning of it. The route doesn’t need all of the ‘action’ its been getting from people trying to turn a buck on it. The more this is done, the less of the real 66 is left. What will remain when the last bucks are soaked out of the last European tourist or biker is the real legacy of Route 66.

    1. In Illinois, yes, the market for Route 66 visitors centers may indeed be saturated. In New Mexico, which doesn’t even have one museum yet, that’s not the case.

  2. Looks like some more delays with the DeAnza

    Those eager to see the redevelopment of the De Anza Motor Lodge will have to wait a little longer. Developer Rob Dickson will miss his hoped for July groundbreaking on the historic motel’s overhaul.
    “The best case scenario is we start construction in the next two months, the worst case scenario is we don’t do the project, but I’m confident that won’t be the case,”Dickson said.“ An August groundbreaking is still a 50-50 possibility.”
    The missed July ground breaking is attributable to the project’s financing not being completed. Necessary permits from state and federal review agencies are still pending. The financing snag centers on a lower appraisal on the property than Dickson had hoped for.
    Dickson, the developer of the Lofts at Albuquerque High, is planning to convert the motel to 39 market rate apartments. A Zuni jewelry store, a Rt. 66 visitor center and a cafe are part of the project. An outdoor swimming pool, and clubhouse are also in the plans. Pavilion Construction is scheduled to do the build out and Integrated Design and Architecture created the design. The city of Albuquerque is Dickson’s partner in the project.
    Dickson was named the project’s master developer in 2011, when his plan was selected over New Life Homes’ attempt to convert the De Anza into affordable housing.
    Los Alamos National Bank is considering providing a construction loan while CBRE Capital is providing permanent financing. The $4.3 million project needs state and federal approvals because of the historic murals in the motel’s basement. Several developers have been frustrated for more than a decade in their attempts to redevelop the site that sits along Central Avenue just east of Nob Hill.

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