The current owners of the Summit Inn held a memorial service Saturday at the charred site of the Route 66 restaurant that was destroyed by a ferocious wildfire in Southern California’s Cajon Pass last month.
The Victorville Daily Press reported:
… Owner Otto Recinos and his family invited the community to the site to share an opportunity not only honoring the Summit Inn’s memory after having burned down during the Bluecutt Fire, but to celebrate the new Summit Inn as they go through the rebuilding process.
“I’m realizing now what we got here is not just a building, but a family for those who have traveled along Route 66 and saw the Summit Inn as their home,” Recinos said. “We’ve been working with the city and the building planning department to get the new restaurant built as soon as possible.”
Those who showed up included longtime former owner C.A. Stevens, who will serve as a consultant when the owners rebuild; longtime Route 66 advocate Jim Conkle; Route 66 artist Len Nordmann; a taco truck and several classic-car owners.
The San Bernardino County Sun also published a story about the Saturday event.
The Summit Inn posted on its Facebook page late Saturday:
We would like to give a very heart-felt thank you to each and every person who came out and participated at the Summit Inn Memorial Event. It was fantastic to see our friends come out and reminisce over old times and dream about new times to come. Again, thank you for all your help and support!
The owners also said they eventually will schedule the relighting of the Route 66 restaurant’s big neon sign — a survivor of the blaze — probably after electricity is restored to the lot.
The Recinos family previously said they hope to rebuild the Summit Inn within a year or so — putting the reopening in late 2017.
The Summit Inn had operated at its present site since 1952, although its roots at the summit of Cajon Pass go back to the late 1920s. Celebrities who had eaten there included Elvis Presley, Pierce Brosnan, Clint Eastwood and Danny Thomas.
Also on hand was Sharon Foster, Vice-President / East of the California Historic Route 66 Association. Sharon has been a strong advocate for not only the Summit Inn but the entire corridor from Needles to the Cajon Pass (her VP territory). She is without question a tremendous advocate for the highway.