By the request of El Vado Motel‘s owner, the rezoning request was deferred for 60 days. The next Planning Commission meeting is Dec. 15.
Media reports say the owner is going to try to work out a compromise in the meantime, including keeping part of the motel and building townhouses on other parts of the property.
So El Vado Motel is safe for the time being.
Emily Priddy, who is in Albuquerque, is going to try to provide more details later.
Congratulations, folks. Your letters and e-mails to the city definitely had an impact.
UPDATE: Emily called to say that she, another Route 66er and a reporter from the Albquerque Tribune had a private meeting with Mr. Gonzales, the new owner of El Vado. He told them he was amenable to preserving most of the motel. In fact, he implied he didn’t even know the historical significance of El Vado until after he bought it. It sounds like he was startled by the outcry over the prospect of it being torn down.
So things are looking pretty good on the preservation front.
Can’t wait for Emily’s report. Maybe it would be a good idea for her to get a few hour of sleep first!
I wouldn’t say he promised us *most* of the motel, but he is willing to save the office, sign, and a few units if we can find an entity to be responsible for running them. Our discussion centered on the possibility of preserving the office and three units on the triangle of land closest to Central Avenue and converting them to a B&B-type establishment. While it’s not the complete preservation we’d all love to see, this plan seems fair to everyone involved. Mr. Gonzales benefits by being able to use the back part of the property for the townhouses, as he’d planned; the remaining three rooms serve as a sort of buffer between the peace and quiet of a residential subdivision and the bustling activity of Central Avenue; and the motel he once saw as an eyesore becomes part of a unique and attractive entrance to his subdivision. Meanwhile, although we lose part of the building, we retain the iconic sign, the beautiful office with attached living quarters, and a sampling of units sufficient to give visitors a sense of what once was there. Additionally, by using the property as a B&B, it retains its intended usage as lodging, travelers who really want to sleep at El Vado still have that option, and the property becomes undesirable to the ne’er-do-wells and transients who at times have overrun it in the past, scaring away travelers. Even the wall around the townhouse complex may be incorporated into this plan: We discussed the prospect of painting a trompe l’oeil mural on the wall, depicting the rear units, to give visitors a better understanding of what was there.
I like this solution, as it saves part of the motel, allows it to remain functional rather than becoming a museum piece, and dovetails nicely with Mr. Gonzales’ personal goal of improving the safety and the appearance of that end of town, which has suffered from crime and neglect in recent years.