The mostly shuttered Cactus Motor Lodge on Route 66 in Tucumcari was voted to the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties, according to a Quay County Sun report. The place had a long history as a gambling haven as well as a place for travelers to sleep. Here's an image of a vintage postcard of … Continue reading Tucumcari motor lodge declared a landmark
Category: Preservation
Residents of Atlanta, Ill., come through
Today's Bloomington Pantagraph reports that a group of Atlanta, Ill., residents has made a $10,000 matching offer toward the Atlanta Library centennial campaign. The centennial celebration is raising funds to restore the Downey building (ed. note: it houses the Palms Grill), a National Register property located along old Route 66 in downtown Atlanta. The building … Continue reading Residents of Atlanta, Ill., come through
Former El Vado Motel owner dies
I received word Monday from Michael Taylor, director for the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program, that Shiraz "Sam" Kassam, 67, the recent former owner of El Vado Motel in Albuquerque, died of a stroke last week. Taylor forwarded the news from an e-mail by Ed Boles of the City of Albuquerque. It contained this interesting … Continue reading Former El Vado Motel owner dies
See? El Vado wasn’t in that bad of shape after all
A report by the Albuquerque Tribune about the Landmarks Commission recommending that El Vado Motel be designated as a landmark was published this afternoon. I won't repeat it here, since most of the basic facts were reported on this site earlier today. But there's this interesting snippet: While public comment was made for and against … Continue reading See? El Vado wasn’t in that bad of shape after all
Landmark status for El Vado Motel recommended
Here's the short version of this: Route 66 wins. On Wednesday, the City of Albuquerque's Landmarks & Urban Conservation Commission unanimously recommended that El Vado Motel on Route 66 be designated a city landmark. A city staffer told me today that the landmark recommendation has to receive final approval from the city council in the … Continue reading Landmark status for El Vado Motel recommended
Another contradiction about El Vado Motel
The new owner of the historic El Vado Motel in Albuquerque, Richard Gonzales, said this during sworn testimony in a recent Landmarks Commission hearing: I conveyed that to Mr. Boles and I can’t understand why they’ve taken this posture that I’m going to demolish the El Vado. It’s just not what I wanted to do. … Continue reading Another contradiction about El Vado Motel
More input on El Vado needed
I'm going to print an e-mail I received from Michael Taylor, program manager for the Route 66 Preservation Program: El Vado's status is still very much up in the air. The more people that fill the rooms at the upcoming meetings, the better. I think it would be especially important to get Albuquerque residents to … Continue reading More input on El Vado needed
Contradictions about El Vado Motel
Kate Nelson, a columnist for the Albuquerque Tribune, weighed in a few days ago about the condition of El Vado Motel: Thick adobe walls and lovely old vigas can't counteract the lunch-gagging stench of the El Vado Motel - a place where the ghosts of meth addicts, prostitutes and worse seem to wander even now, … Continue reading Contradictions about El Vado Motel
Emily’s marathon effort is over
Emily Priddy, eastern vice president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association, completed the 26.2-mile Oklahoma Marathon in Tulsa on Saturday. Temperatures at race time were in the 40s and 50s, with blustery winds. Her time for her first marathon was around 5:22 or 5:23. You can read about her day here. Also, because her race … Continue reading Emily’s marathon effort is over
Column about El Vado Motel
Kate Nelson of the Albuquerque Tribune weighs in with a column with a more pessimistic view of El Vado Motel preservation efforts. I don't agree with her, especially after talking to several people who’ve stayed at the motel and say its condition is nowhere near as grave as Nelson implies. If any of you readers … Continue reading Column about El Vado Motel