https://youtu.be/wBzLYDQbK3o By tomorrow, we should know whether the Route 66 Zipline will continue to run in Williams, Ariz. Recent votes by two commissions offer little guidance on how the city council will vote. That's because the Historic Preservation Commission unanimously voted earlier this month to deny the business a special-use permit. However, the Planning and Zoning … Continue reading Williams committees send mixed messages to Route 66 Zipline
Category: Towns
Has a sea change occurred with Route 66 tourism?
About 100 residents of the St. Louis suburb of Crestwood, Mo., recently gave opinions on how to revitalize the Watson Road, aka Route 66, according to an article in Call Newspapers. It's encouraging enough so many showed up to an alderman's town-hall meeting. But what intrigued me is so many people cited Route 66 as … Continue reading Has a sea change occurred with Route 66 tourism?
Arcadia in high-risk situation if nearby dam fails
Reports from television sometimes tend to get a little hyperbolic. But this one from KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City about the Route 66 town of Arcadia, Okla., brings a new angle to the state's newfound earthquake problem I hadn't considered. The gist: The Oklahoma Water Resources Board is increasingly concerned about earthquakes' effects on nearby Arcadia … Continue reading Arcadia in high-risk situation if nearby dam fails
Fundraising goal reached for Route 66 roadside park
A Route 66-themed roadside park planned in Springfield, Mo., has more than reached its $15,000 fundraising goal with two days remaining, reported KOLR-TV in Springfield. Springfield-based CrowdIt.com, a crowd-funding online service, helped spur the campaign. Here's the station's report: The campaign included this very cool promotional video: Because the campaign raised extra money with two … Continue reading Fundraising goal reached for Route 66 roadside park
Professional baseball will return to Joplin
As expected, the City of Joplin, Mo., approved a lease this week with an independent professional baseball team from El Paso, Texas, to move into and renovate century-old Joe Becker Stadium, reported the Joplin Globe. The newspaper reported details of the arrangement: The lease requires the city to spend $4 million enlarging and updating the … Continue reading Professional baseball will return to Joplin
Pasadena may narrow Colorado Boulevard
The city of Pasadena, Calif., may narrow Colorado Boulevard (aka Route 66) to make it more friendly for pedestrians and cyclists, reported the Los Angeles Times. Pasadena is considering plans to narrow portions of Colorado by as much as two lanes and use that space to widen sidewalks and create tiny parks with seating and … Continue reading Pasadena may narrow Colorado Boulevard
All of Route 66’s towns
An enterprising YouTube user has assembled city-limit signs, welcome signs, or other landmark signs of each town on Route 66 and put them onto one video: https://youtu.be/8DBmhPj2EeQ A few dinky or ghost towns are missing, and the 1920s alignment in central Illinois isn't covered. But this clip is remarkably comprehensive. (Image of Glenrio at the … Continue reading All of Route 66’s towns
Should Route 66 towns that were sundown towns apologize?
The above image is a postcard of the long-gone Royce Cafe along Route 66 in Edmond, Okla., from the 1930s or '40s. Do you see anything different about it? If you're not spotting it, here's a close-up the unusual part: The "6,000 Live Citizens -- No Negroes" part of the postcard was a symptom that … Continue reading Should Route 66 towns that were sundown towns apologize?
Number of visitors to Pontiac increases again in 2013
The number of tourists to the Route 66 town of Pontiac, Ill., increased for the fourth straight year in 2013, according to numbers released this week by Pontiac Tourism. Tourism director Ellie Alexander said overall tourism numbers rose by 5 percent during the year, to a record 24,173. Pontiac saw robust increases in international visitors … Continue reading Number of visitors to Pontiac increases again in 2013
On the Mother Road with Freeway Jim
A fellow on YouTube by the name of Freeway Jim takes a lot of video of his travels. A few days ago, he posted "Off the Beaten Path" videos of sections of Route 66 that were bypassed by Interstate 40. Although they're high-definition, the speeded-up videos aren't remarkable by themselves. What's interesting are the annotations, … Continue reading On the Mother Road with Freeway Jim