I attended a couple of Route 66-related seminars and took a stroll in the exhibition hall on Wednesday during the National Preservation Conference at the Tulsa Convention Center in Tulsa. Here are a few news items that should be of interest to roadies: -- I ran into Albert Okura, owner of the Juan Pollo restaurants … Continue reading Notes from the Preservation Conference
Category: Motels
Fire damages Alpine Haus hotel
The distinctive Alpine Haus hotel on old Route 66 in St. Robert, Mo., was damaged by fire Saturday, reported the Waynesville Daily Guide. No one was injured -- probably because a nearby trailer park resident saw the flames, knocked on doors at the hotel and roused the sleeping residents who fled to safety. No one … Continue reading Fire damages Alpine Haus hotel
City may buy Bel-Aire Motel as tourism stop
The city of Springfield, Ill., is in discussions with the state for funding to buy the Bel-Aire Motel so it can be converted into a Route 66 Discovery Center, reports the Journal-Register. The motel is still operating, but it's now a haven of criminal activity. But both Mayor Tim Davlin and supporters of a statewide, … Continue reading City may buy Bel-Aire Motel as tourism stop
Route 66 Corridor Program grant recipients announced
Here's the list of recipients of 2008 cost-share grants from the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program: The Mill Restaurant rehabilitation, Lincoln, Ill., $10,000 from the National Park Service, $28,000 match Donut Drive-In, St. Louis, neon sign restoration, $9,875 NPS, $10,925 match Devil's Elbow Bridge, Devil's Elbow, Mo., emergency stabilization, $8,000 NPS, $22,000 match Front Street … Continue reading Route 66 Corridor Program grant recipients announced
Notes from the road
Actor Paul Newman, who voiced Doc Hudson in the 2006 Disney-Pixar movie "Cars," died over the weekend. I wanted to contact Route 66 author Michael Wallis, who played the Sheriff and served as a technical adviser in the film, about it but was out of town. Wallis confirmed to me Tuesday that he indeed had … Continue reading Notes from the road
Another sign gone
I heard Wednesday morning that the old neon sign for the Gateway Motor Inn, aka the Gateway Motor Hotel, along Oklahoma 66 halfway between Tulsa and Sapulpa, Okla., was down. I checked it out. There is was -- flat on the parking lot, surrounded by road cones and shards of broken neon tubing. It was … Continue reading Another sign gone
Musical TV series to be shot on Route 66
Greene HD Productions is taking to the Mother Road next month to shoot a 13-episode television series called "Rhythms of the Road." From the news release: Combining the successful Johnnie High’s Country Music Revue series aired during the past two years on the RFD TV cable network and Greene’s work on the award-winning Route 66 … Continue reading Musical TV series to be shot on Route 66
Revamped edition of “Dining & Lodging Guide” is out
For a number of years, we've been among the Adopt-A-Hundred volunteers (as in "adopt a 100 miles of Route 66") for the National Historic Route 66 Federation's "Route 66 Dining and Lodging Guide." So when we submitted our sections' recommended restaurants and motels earlier this summer, we knew we'd get a courtesy copy within a … Continue reading Revamped edition of “Dining & Lodging Guide” is out
New Tucumcari billboards, banners
It's not a new slogan, but new "Tucumcari Tonite!" billboards to publicize the Route 66 town of Tucumcari, N.M., are about to go up along Interstate 40. There also will be "Tucumcari Tonite!" banners of a similar design along the city's main drags, including Route 66. There also are several Tucumcari centennial banners. Richard Talley, … Continue reading New Tucumcari billboards, banners
Notes from the road
The Gallup (N.M.) Independent has an article about Route 66 sights in town before members of the Society for Commercial Archeology come check them out today. The article laments about how little is left of Route 66 sites in Gallup. But you can say that about a lot of towns -- many Route 66 businesses … Continue reading Notes from the road