Thunderbird Inn / Econo Lodge / Rodeway Inn, 773 Saint Andrews Road: Spring 2020 3 comments
I can't recall that I've ever stayed in a Rodeway Inn, the mental picture I have is of pretty basic accomdation, but this one, at least, had a pool on-site. This property started, I believe, as a Thunderbird Inn, a now nearly defunct chain with really cool signs. At some point thereafter, it was an Econo Lodge, as you can see in these pictures I took for the co-located Hilltop Restaurant closing.
Now, the Rodeway has closed, and they are doing asbestos abatement on the property, presumably in preparation to tear the whole place down. Google doesn't turn up any news stories, so I'm not sure what's next for this property.
The first set of pictures below comes from commenter Heath:
I took the next set, starting by going up the stairway to the old Hilltop location, which remains vacant after fifteen years. I'm not sure what was going on with the "driftwood".
Finally, I would be remiss if I failed to include a picture of the Thunderbird Inn neon sign from the remaining locaiton in Florence. At one time this was one of the best neon signs in the state. The picture has it somewhat past its peak, and it is nowhere close to this nice today:
(Hat tip to commenters Andrew & Heath)
UPDATE 13 January 2021: As mentioned in the comments, this building is gone:
UPDATE 9 October 2024: Update tags.
3 Responses to 'Thunderbird Inn / Econo Lodge / Rodeway Inn, 773 Saint Andrews Road: Spring 2020'
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Tom
27 Oct 20 at 6:25 am
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This is the future location of a Quick Trip travel center.
Jordan
3 Nov 20 at 2:44 pm
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I know that several folks were seeking to remember the several different hotel brands that passed through this building over the years but however many it had, one thing that I can be certain of is that this building has now been razed and I anticipate QT construction sometime after the holidays...
Andrew
17 Dec 20 at 4:51 pm
As I mentioned in a previous post, I think it was first opened as a Park Inn, which was a concept created by former Holiday Inn executives. Ironically, at one time it was a Holiday Inn Express ( think.)