A locally based ownership group has taken possession of the historic Skyliner Motel in Stroud, Oklahoma, with plans to renovate the property and restore its iconic neon sign to its original appearance.
Charles Palmer and his friend Cody Paige of Stroud-based Skyliner Investments told Route 66 News that he closed on the property along Route 66 on Thursday.
“The crane is scheduled in coming days to come and take sign … it will take approximately 6 weeks to completely restore sign to original condition,” Palmer wrote in a direct message.
The previous owners changed the “Motel” part of the sign from neon letters to a backlit format, though the cursive-style “Skyliner” neon and its big arrow remained intact.
Palmer wrote in a Facebook post that the company will remodel the motel “with upgraded amenities.”
He also set up a Facebook page for the motel here.
He texted that he hopes the motel will be fully reopened by October after the facelift.
“The office will be opened up as a commons area for groups and patrons to hang out and have a drink, play a game and will have history and pictures of 66 and Stroud … very heavy on the story of Stroud and 66. … Memorabilia will be available as well!”
Skyliner Investments plans a grand reopening event for the motel on Jan. 1, which begins the centennial year of Route 66. He said several partners in Stroud — including the iconic Rock Cafe — will be open late that day for the event.
Palmer is one of the driving forces behind Stroud’s ambitious Route 66 neon sign project, where new and old signs along the highway will be erected or restored by the end of this year. The Oklahoma Route 66 Commission last year awarded the city a $999,600 grant for the project.
The idea for a slew of neon signs along Stroud’s Route 66 corridor came from a key scene in the 2006 Disney-Pixar animated film “Cars,” which took place in a fictional Route 66 town.
According to Route 66 Times, the 10-room Skyliner Motel opened in 1950 at the corner of Main Street (aka Route 66) and Highway 99 / U.S. 377.
(Image of the Skyliner Motel sign in Stroud, Oklahoma, by Charles Hathaway via Flickr)