Scenes from El Vado Motel’s grand reopening

Hundreds of people flocked to the grand reopening Friday night of the historic El Vado Motel in Albuquerque after a 13-year hiatus.

KOB-TV filed this 2 1/2-minute report from the scene:

A few facts about El Vado Motel and its $18 million redevelopment:

• The complex exists as a combination boutique motel, events center and a business incubator of shops, restaurants and even a pub featuring local beers.
• The motel itself contains 22 rooms. Overnight guests can book themselves through El Vado’s website.
• Don’t go looking in catalogs for the rooms’ mid-century furniture. The furnishings were hand-made.
• The motel kept the cable-television package for overnight guests limited so they could go outside more and interact with people.
• Even if you don’t book a room, you still can visit El Vado Motel at its sizable outdoor courtyard and its businesses.
• The redevelopment of the property took longer than expected because of unforeseen hurdles with soil-related issues and utilities.
• El Vado Motel’s owner, Palindrome Communities, also acquired the nearby Monterey Non-Smokers Motel on Route 66 and plans to renovate it.

Irish immigrant Daniel Murphy opened El Vado Auto Court Motel in 1937. It was cited as one of the best examples of pre-World War II motels in New Mexico. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

El Vado closed in late 2005 after a new owner said he wanted to bulldoze it to make way for luxury townhouses. The city seized the property a few years later after a fight to save the motel.

(Image from El Vado Motel’s grand reopening via the motel’s Facebook account)