It’s a bit of good news and bad news in this report by columnist Kevin Herrera of the Santa Monica (Calif.) Daily Press.
The bad news is that the Village Motel, which has sat at 2624 Santa Monica Blvd., aka Route 66, for more than 50 years, will soon no longer operate as a lodging establishment.
The good news is the Village Motel will be converted into Daniel’s Village, an eight-unit transitional housing complex for young adults who are in the early stages of mental illness. The motel is being bought by Step Up, a mental health provider, and the City of Santa Monica for $2.4 million. Without the housing, the youths are in danger of living on the streets and being homeless.
It’s sad that the Village Motel will no longer be a motel. But it’s good that it will remain useful.