City looking for signs

As the Chairman of the Barstow Redevelopment Agency, I thought it was important to begin restoration of the historic Route 66 signs along Main St. Thousands of visitors from around the world explore the famous Route 66 here in Barstow. Joe

Staff photo by David Heldreth Main Street traffic passes the Downtown Motel and Torches Motel on Thursday afternoon. The motel's signs will soon be refurbished if a proposed sign project is approved.

Barstow could contribute to project to restore downtown signs By JASON SMITH Staff Writer BARSTOW - Some of Barstow's old signs on iconic Route 66 downtown may get a facelift, funded in part by the city. The City Council is considering a proposal to fund $90,000 of a $180,000 project to restore nine neon Route 66 signs to their original condition to encourage tourism and development. The restoration costs range from $10,000 to $60,000 for each sign, making the expense a significant hardship for most small business owners, city spokesman John Rader said. Funding for the project is still being sought, but project proponents hope to obtain a National Park Service grant for $90,000. The remainder of the funds would be provided by the city, the business owners and community groups. According to Rader, some of the signs had really become dilapidated, and the upgrades could present a more positive image of the community. "I think for a tourism standpoint, Route 66 is still a very big draw, even more so for international tourism from Europe especially," Rader said. The city worked with the California Route 66 Preservation Foundation to identify the nine signs that best represent downtown's heyday, when Route 66 was a major thoroughfare. "We are trying to make the area into stop-through places rather than pass-through places, and the way to do that is by providing photo opportunities," said Jim Conkle, founder of the California Route 66 Preservation Society. His group also hopes to restore the Daggett agricultural station inspection, currently owned by the County of San Bernardino, and turn it into a welcome center for travelers on the historic road. Conkle, who is attending a Route 66 preservation convention in Clinton, Okla., stressed the need to preserve these "pieces of history." He said the project is still in the planning stages, and the group is seeking community involvement. Though funding has not been secured, the group hopes to begin work sometime next year and restore one or two signs a year. The signs are the property of the business owners and would remain so; agreements on liability and maintenance would have to be worked out. Two of the signs, for the Village Hotel & Cafe and the Barstow Garage, advertise businesses that no longer exist. These signs could be restored and possibly be turned over to the Route 66 Mother Road Museum or other organization, Rader said.