Here's a St. Louis Post-Dispatch article today about efforts by the Route 66 Association of Missouri and other preservation groups to prevent the razing of the historic Route 66 Bridge at Route 66 State Park near Eureka. [...] Joe Sonderman of Hazelwood, a local traffic reporter and author of three books on Route 66, said … Continue reading Rally ’round the bridge
Category: Preservation
Benld church will be converted to monastery
A 103-year-old Russian Orthodox Church on Route 66 in Benld, Ill., will be converted into a monastery -- instead of being razed -- because of declining attendance, reported the Springfield State Journal-Register. Mindful of Holy Dormition’s rich history, but acknowledging a declining membership and church rules that say an unused building must be torn down, … Continue reading Benld church will be converted to monastery
Cost-share grant season begins
Now is the time of year in which you can apply for a cost-share grant from the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program. These grants, which cover up to 50 percent of the cost of a project, mostly are awarded for repairs or improvements to historic properties along Route 66. Applications can be found here, or … Continue reading Cost-share grant season begins
The grim state of the Route 66 Bridge
A representative from the Missouri Department of Transportation attended the Route 66 Association of Missouri's meeting this weekend and painted a grim picture of the state of the Route 66 Bridge near Eureka, Mo., adjacent to Route 66 State Park. The state recently closed the bridge to the public and has proposed demolishing the dilapidated … Continue reading The grim state of the Route 66 Bridge
Logan County sees huge jump in tourism dollars
Geoff Ladd, tourism director for Logan County, Ill., saw an unprecedented jump of 30 percent in tourism revenue in 2009, and Route 66 played a role in that, reported the Lincoln Courier. There were a number of reasons cited in the rise in motel tax revenue: the opening of a Hampton Inn and the reopening … Continue reading Logan County sees huge jump in tourism dollars
A destructive development idea
With the U.S. economy struggling, politicians are looking for ways to create jobs. But one office-seeker in Canadian County, Okla., has an idea that would prove destructive to a historic section of Route 66. Larry Nance, an Oklahoma Route 66 Association county representative in El Reno, said at the association's meeting Sunday that such an … Continue reading A destructive development idea
Notes from the road
The historic Riviera Restaurant on Route 66 in Gardner, Ill., reopened on New Year's Eve. Check out this story in the Batavia Sun about it. However, there is one potential snag that will be worth watching: The new owner is dealing with a request from the Gardner Fire Department to put in an expensive commercial … Continue reading Notes from the road
Not just any meeting
The quarterly meeting of the Route 66 Association of Missouri, set for Jan. 16 after a noon lunch at Matt's Steakhouse in Rolla, isn't going to be just any meeting, according to a report by Three Rivers Publishing. First, a Missouri Department of Transportation official will be discussing the Old Route 66 Bridge at Route … Continue reading Not just any meeting
Joplin museum director Q&A
Brad Belk, the director for the Joplin (Mo.) Museum Complex, answered questions from Joplin Globe readers about his proposal for a one-sixth-cent sales tax to move the museum and its contents to historic Memorial Hall. Most of the questions are worth perusing, but his answer from a person who asked why the historic railroad depot … Continue reading Joplin museum director Q&A
Comprehensive study planned for Route 66 in California
The California Preservation Foundation and the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program are joining forces to begin a first-ever comprehensive study of that state's portion of historic Route 66, according to a news release Monday from the foundation. The study will be completed as a Multiple Property Documentation Form, a format used to nominate groups of … Continue reading Comprehensive study planned for Route 66 in California