The elaborate and ambitious Route 66 Christmas Chute will open the evening of Nov. 3 in downtown Sapulpa, Oklahoma, on a stretch of original Route 66.
The Route 66 Christmas Chute essentially is 10 themed outdoor pavilions being constructed on the outer lanes of three closed-off blocks of Dewey Avenue (aka Route 66) in Sapulpa, ending at a 30-foot-tall Christmas tree in front of the county courthouse.
After the “lights on” ceremony on Nov. 3, it will be open to pedestrians nightly through Jan. 1. It will be open from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, with special events on the weekends.
More than 300 volunteers and 10 committees have been working on it daily in a warehouse since summer and, lately, in the festival area itself since early October.
The chute was created with more than $800,000 in donations from individuals and businesses. More stats about the chute:
- 35,000 feet of lights
- 1,100 feet of decorations
- 15,000 feet of garland
- 3,500 icicles
- 1,100 grand ball ornaments
The key to Sapulpa residents accomplishing this was the city taking over three miles of Route 66 from the state. According to a news release:
“That’s huge,” said Cindy Lawrence, director of the Sapulpa Main Street program.
This required almost two years of negotiation and planning with state transportation officials to reroute all sorts of present and future commercial traffic to other Sapulpa arteries. City officials expect to retain the benefits of that business on roads more suited to its needs. More important, taking control of this Route 66 segment allows Sapulpa to better tap the Mother Road’s cultural value.
“We will be able to use this historic section of Route 66 for all sorts of celebrations and events,” said Lawrence. “It opens the door to the future.”
Those three miles connect to the Heart of Route 66 Auto Museum, the historic Rock Creek Bridge, the TeePee Drive-In theatre and a large mural on a water tank.
Will Berry, who came up with the Route 66 Christmas Chute idea, explained in an email that what inspired it was the company where he works moved to Sapulpa’s downtown:
I asked myself the question: What brings people to Sapulpa right now? The only thing that I could think of that brought people to our city limits (not even our downtown) was Paragon Industries’ amazing Christmas light display on highway 117. It is on every Christmas light tour that I know of.
Then after seeing how the restaurant Roosevelts (15th and Peoria) packs people into their restaurant over the holidays, then also personally experiencing the 2-hour car wait to view the winner of the Christmas light contest 2 or 3 years ago in Jenks made me realize that there is a huge following for Christmas cheer (lights, etc.).
Then the brainstorming began. It started as a tunnel (like Freemont Street in Vegas), added decorations on the ceilings of the structure like Roosevelts, and the Christmas Chute was born (the Idea).
Because of the expected surge of night visitors, downtown businesses and restaurants have been encouraged to stay open late through the holiday season.
After Jan. 1, the canopies will be dismantled and the decorations placed into storage for the next Christmas season. Vehicle traffic then will be reopened in that three-block area.
(Night image of the under-construction Route 66 Christmas Chute in Sapulpa, Oklahoma, courtesy of Will Berry)
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