The Clinton (Oklahoma) Economic Development Authority this week received two proposals for the Glancy Motel and Pop Hicks properties, prompting it to urge the City Council to not accept bids for the properties’ demolition as previously planned.
Details of the proposals were reported in the Clinton Daily News (subscription required).
Local residents Corky Heard and Mart Tisdal submitted the first proposal that includes restoring the motel:
The plan would restore 18 rooms on the west side of the property with all new electric and plumbing. Each room would be themed around state’s Route 66 passes through and famous Route 66 landmarks, movies and people who played a significant role in the history of the road.
The north side of the property would include RV campsites, vintage airstream rentals and common areas for grilling and games along with green space and landscaping. Additional parking would be added east of the pool with the possibility of the area being utilized for car shows, outdoor music and food trucks. No plans have been included for the swimming pool.
Heard and Tisdal told the authority they didn’t have a full plan ready before the deadline but expressed confidence in it after consulting with a local contractor about the state of the motel.
They said a seven-member foundation would raise funds for the project, and they already have more than $300,000 in commitments for it.
Commonwealth Development Corporation of America, a company that specializes in redeveloping historic properties, submitted the second proposal.
Their $7.5 million plan for the property includes registering the property on the National Register of Historic Places and converting it into apartment residences which will be financed by state and federal
housing tax credits along with state and federal historic tax credits.The plan includes creating a 40-unit multi-family development consisting of 18 one-bedroom and 19 two-bedroom apartments. Existing rooms will be rehabilitated to apartment units along with the construction of 12 units along the western border of the property.
The former office of the Glancy will be refurbished into an onsite management office and community
spaces for residents. Proposed amenities include a fully fenced perimeter, a fenced commercial playground, a barbeque grill area and a dog run or splash pad in place of the existing pool.
The authority will evaluate the two new proposals at its next meeting on Dec. 6.
No mention was made in either proposal to rebuild the long-defunct Pop Hicks restaurant. Local oilman Rick Koch originally had planned to restore both the Glancy Motel and Pop Hicks, but he backed away from the project so he could concentrate on the closed Whitten Inn, formerly a Ramada Inn, on the city’s west side near Interstate 40 and the Oklahoma Route 66 Museum.
The closed Glancy Motel at 217 W. Gary Blvd. (aka Route 66) was condemned by the city in 2019 after numerous code violations. The motel was built in 1950 and remodeled in 2007.
A fire destroyed the iconic Pop Hicks restaurant next to the motel in 1999. Pop Hicks never was rebuilt because it lacked insurance. The restaurant opened in 1936.
(Image of the Glancy Motel in Clinton, Oklahoma, via Facebook)