The Western Scene Motel, formerly the Western Holiday Motel, in Santa Fe likely would be struggling because of the motel’s age and a glut of lodging in New Mexico’s capital city.
But as the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper describes it, the motel faces an even cloudier future because of a feud between two sects of the Bhakta family over ownership of the business and the Sunrise General Store. Relations have frayed so much that one party filed a restraining order against the other.
On top of that, a delivery truck accidentally knocked down a power line to the property several months ago, and it remains closed until repairs that will cost tens of thousands of dollars are completed.
One excerpt:
Savita Bhakta said in her petition for a restraining order against Jagdish Bhakta that she wants to sell the Sunrise property on Old Las Vegas Highway and use the money to make repairs to the motel. She claimed her son has been doing what he pleases with the motel and the Sunrise General Store without her knowledge or permission.
“She is afraid to continue living at the motel because he threatens and bullies her,” according to the petition, which says her son was removing and selling items, taking money from her bank account and renting rooms for cash.
For his part, Jagdish Bhakta said he wants to the reopen the Sunrise General Store and gas station and continue operating it and the motel as he says he has for years.
Online reviews indicate customer satisfaction at both the Sunrise General Store and Western Scene had been steadily declining for years, something Jagdish Bhakta claimed is the fault of his sister and mother.
“My mom was not a business lady,” he said. “My dad was a businessman.”
Family members have filed lawsuits against each other and even flipped each other off in court. The saga started about 15 years ago with the death of the patriarch from a broken neck during a fall.
Members of the Bhakta family also own the King’s Rest Court Inn, Garrett’s Desert Inn and the Econo Lodge — all along old Route 66 in Santa Fe.
According to the article, the motel has been the Western Scene since 1963, although it undoubtedly dates to well before that. It sits on Cerrillos Road, a 1926-1937 alignment of Route 66 in the city.
The whole lengthy story is worth reading and, frankly, sad. Hopefully, cooler heads eventually will prevail, and the Western Scene Motel will be repaired and reopened.
(Vintage postcard image of the Western Holiday Motel in Santa Fe via 66Postcards.com; modern-day image of the Western Scene Motel by Steven Pinker via Flickr)
Are the other establishments owned by the family run any better than this one?
King’s Rest Court, by all accounts, is run very well.