Abandoned church may be converted into senior housing September 6, 2011
Posted by Ron Warnick in Motels, Preservation.add a comment
The long-abandoned St. Mary Carmelite Catholic Church in downtown Joliet, Ill., may be converted into senior-citizen housing instead of being demolished, reported the Chicago Tribune.
Chicago-based Celadon Holdings has plans to renovate the church and develop a 60-unit residential facility with the top units enjoying the gothic ceiling of the church, said Scott Henry, a Celadon principal. [...]
Plans are preliminary, but when another property the company was looking at in Joliet did not work out, city officials pointed Celadon to the St. Mary site.
“There is a strong desire in the city to save the building,” Henry said of the church, whose steeple is a local icon.
Last week, the Joliet Land Use Committee approved the project’s concept. Federal tax credits would offset the project’s $20 million price tag, Henry said. Groundbreaking could be in 6 to 12 months, he said.
The church, which sits on Route 66, has long been a part of the Joliet’s skyline. A photo of the distinctive-looking church is here.
According to the report, Celadon Holdings also is looking for other structures along Route 66 to renovate for housing, including old hotels.
“Road to Nowhere” September 5, 2011
Posted by Ron Warnick in Music.add a comment
The name of this band is Talking Heads:
Hello from Indonesia September 4, 2011
Posted by Ron Warnick in Music.1 comment so far
This version of Bobby Troup’s most famous song is sung by a 7-year-old. Sounds like she’s started vamping early:
“Highway Star” September 3, 2011
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An oldie but a goodie from Deep Purple, aka Ritchie Blackmore’s band:
http://youtu.be/jOQHuDLE-Dk
Items displayed from old Route 66 motel September 1, 2011
Posted by Ron Warnick in History, Motels, Restaurants.1 comment so far
At the main office of the Holiday Inn Express in Litchfield, Ill., is a display of memorabilia from the long-gone 66 Motel Court and Route 66 in general, reports The Journal-News of Hillsboro, Ill.
Sisters and hotel owners Jane Martin and Nancy Hyam, created the wall as a tribute to their parents, Lorman and Dorothy Mansholt, who bought their first Litchfield hotel, the 66 Motel Court in 1963. [...]
The wall, which has shelves built into the office, starts with memorabilia from the 66 Motel Court, which was originally located across from where Niehaus Cycle Sales is today. [...]
Each room featured monogrammed towels and sheets, which are among the collectibles featured on the office wall. They also have hotel soap, an ice bucket and an oscillating fan, as none of the rooms had air conditioning.
Just below the fan is a wooden key box, which used to hold all the motel’s room keys in a time before electronic keys.
“We used actual keys up until the 66 Motel Court closed, as well as handwritten statements and receipts,” Hyam said.
Sitting on top of the key boxes is a novelty item, “magic fingers,” which would vibrate a hotel bed for just a quarter. That remains a favorite among the saved memorabilia.
The Mansholt family operated the motel until the mid-1980s.
An image of the 66 Motel Court’s neon sign can be seen here. An old postcard of the motel can be seen here.
The display also contains items from the Gardens restaurant in Litchfield, which the family purchased in 1978. Among the items is a Mother’s Day menu from the 1960s. The restaurant was sold in 2003.
The family also operated a Best Western hotel, and have displayed a rotary-dial phone, many of brochures and travel guides from the lobby, and a manual route finder (similar to modern-day GPS). The hotel was sold in 2001; it is now an America’s Best Value Inn.