Or maybe not. But you may at least be pleased to hear that they\u2019re bringing back some of that vintage neon signage.<\/p>\n
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On Monday, the city\u2019s Centennial Commission approved a $762,000 budget to reinstate and restore some of the classic signage from shuttered and long-since forgotten motels along Fremont East. These include historic dives such as Travelers Motel, Lucky Motel, Las Vegas Motel, Starview Motel, Gables Motel, and Valley Motel.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The buildings are largely still standing and will restored to their former lo-fi glory, but they will not actually operate as motels.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Las Vegas were a person, neon would be our signature,\u201d said City Attorney Brad Jerbic, during his pitch to the commission, the Las Vegas Review-Journal <\/em>reported.<\/em><\/p>\n\u2018Nothing Behind the Curtain\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\nIncidentally, the original above-mentioned Las Vegas Club actually opened in 1930, across the street from its final location. In 1931, its owner, J. Kell Houssels, erected the first ever neon sign on a casino-hotel in the entire world — so maybe Jerbic has a point.<\/p>\n
LVRJ <\/em>notes that not everyone was buying it, though.<\/p>\n“I\u2019m concerned with this facade we\u2019re building of motels that aren\u2019t really motels,\u201d said commission member Robert Stoldal. \u201cI don\u2019t really see what the value is to a person who goes down there. They\u2019ll look behind the curtain, and there\u2019s nothing behind the curtain.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nBut city councilman Bob Coffin was more enthusiastic. He emphasized the city was committed to making further improvements in the area after creating the Las Vegas Community Healing Garden in the aftermath of the October 1 shooting.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that has lit a fire in the city, and that\u2019s why we\u2019re willing to spend our funds to revive this downtown and capture the past,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The face of downtown Las Vegas is changing. Last year, the historic Las Vegas Club, which had stood on the corner of Fremont and Main since 1949, was demolished to make way for Derek Stevens\u2019 new casino project. It will be the first casino to be built from the ground up downtown since 1980, but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":84934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3313,18],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Vintage Neon Signage to Light Up Downtown Once Again<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n