Wagon Wheel, Oxnard, California

The Wagon Wheel Motel and Restaurant is a famous office and restaurant complex located in Oxnard, California, at the intersection of U.S. Route 101 and Pacific Coast Highway. Its convenient roadside location made it a popular stop for travelers between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, particularly during its heyday in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.

Architecture

It is considered to be an authentic extant example of American roadside architecture from the mid-century. The ranch-style office, motel and restaurant were originally built on the side of Highway 101 and Highway 101A (Alternate) in 1947. The office/restaurant complex incorporates a variety of roof lines, primarily low to medium pitched gables covered with wood shingles and punctuated by several decorative cupolas with weather vanes, and neon lighting. A free-standing 12-unit, two-story motel addition was completed in 1953. The most recognizable feature of the motel was the giant neon sign that included an animated stagecoach driver and galloping horses. Today millions of motorists drive by the Wagon Wheel each year on the Ventura Freeway. Sadly, the Wagon Wheel and other landmarks are being torn down to make way for condos.

The Wagon Wheel Bowling Alley, 2801 Wagon Wheel Road is a 32-lane bowling alley built in the Wagon Wheel Junction across the street from the Wagon Wheel Motel in 1953. Designed by the Beverly Hills architect, Arthur Froehlich, known for his mid-century supermarkets and racetracks including the Hollywood Park Racetrack, and the Hanna Barbera Studio in Los Angeles 1962. The building has planer wall surfaces, an over-scaled wing wall and plate glass windows; the bowling alley included a restaurant and banquet room and is an example of the type of reductive Modernism that enjoyed great popularity in the mid-century. The bowling alley was known as Hoberg’s after its proprietor, Ed Hoberg. The building has been in continuous operation as a bowling alley since 1953.

History

Constructed in 1947, it was the first development by famous Oxnard developer Martin V. ("Bud") Smith. The Wagon Wheel Motel and Restaurant are part of a 40-acre mid-century real estate development in north Oxnard, California called the Wagon Wheel Junction. Before Smith purchased the land in 1945, it was prone to flooding, and was not actually in the city of Oxnard, but rather it was situated four miles north of Oxnard and six miles south of Ventura. After its completion, it became the most recognizable mid-century landmark on the 101 Ventura Freeway in Ventura County.

During excavation of the site, Smith uncovered branding irons from the Hobson Brothers' feed lot operations in the area in the 1920s, and he used this as the basis for his western theme. He began with the repurposing of surplus Seabee barracks won at auction in Port Hueneme, which he relocated in the typical sweeping U shape of period motels. It was the pre-pool era so the rooms all faced a grassy play area with picnic tables. He cut some of the barracks in half and transformed others into a restaurant and office with a western ranch style.

He hired Hollywood set designer and carpenter Roy Beatty to design and create wrought iron lamps from branding irons and spurs, and furnish the original rooms with rustic wood beds, chairs and lamps. The theme for the property was typical of the then popular cowboy movies, with windows made from wagon wheels, and cowhide chairs in the restaurant. Along the highway real wagon wheels were placed in the median next to a rustic wooden sign that read: WAGON WHEEL MOTEL � NEW AND MODERN - BREAKFAST SERVICE DAY AND NIGHT - SINGLE $3 � DOUBLE $4 � FAMILY SUITES

Smith had 40 acres to develop, and the area soon had a bowling alley, shopping center, roller skating rink, industrial units, and a row of restaurants. These were all located on streets with wild-west names like Winchester Dr., Petticoat Lane, Saddle Ave., and Buckaroo Dr. His restaurant row included the Wagon Wheel Steakhouse, the El Ranchito and the Trade Winds Polynesian restaurant.

When Bud Smith shifted into semi-retirement in the mid 1990s, his company, Martin V. Smith and Associates was the biggest developer and landlord in Oxnard with some 4500 tenants and over 200 properties from Calabasas to Santa Maria. Rather than retire and vacate his office on the 21st story of the Financial Plaza tower, he divested himself of most of his properties, but he kept the Wagon Wheel.

The demolition of the Colonial House, in 1988, left the Wagon Wheel as the only remaining early example of Bud Smith's vision.

The Wagon Wheel Restaurant was closed in 2005, and the motel was closed in November 2006.

The Wagon Wheel Junction is a part of a fast disappearing piece of Americana architecture. In 1910, the Automobile Association of America planted the seeds of motel identification with its debut of the "Official Automobile Blue Book". In the 1950s, independent motel owners began competing with the cookie cutter Holiday Inns of the time with their gargantuan, green-and-yellow signage. Independents, such as the Wagon Wheel, developed the art of roadside showmanship through thematic architectural design and elaborate signage that employed porcelain-enameled panels of steel and used a myriad of lamps and neon. The thematic and imaginative sign of the Wagon Wheel and its "B" movie ranch architecture serves not only as a style statement of a particular time in motel history, but has served as a visual place marker along Highway 101 for more than 50 years. On approaching the Wagon Wheel, the roadside traveler knew immediately "We are in Oxnard", as there was nothing like it anywhere else. In much the same way, the Madonna Inn and the Apple Farm notifies the traveler that one has nearly reached San Luis Obispo. These thematic roadside motels and hotels are the story of California's love of the automobile, written in their architecture and lending identity to the cities they occupy along the monotonous threads of numbing highway that string those cities and towns together throughout the state.

Future

As of July 2008, no plans have been accepted by the City of Oxnard, and no demolition permits have been granted. The property owner hired Post/Hazeltine Associates (of Santa Barbara) in November 2005 to prepare a Historic Resources Report of the entire 64-acre property, including the Wagon Wheel Motel, Restaurant and Bowling Alley. The results of this assessment concluded that these structures did not meet criteria for designation as a landmark, due primarily to the fact that numerous structural additions have been made to the buildings over the years which no longer effectively convey the original western theme appearance. Since this first report found no significant resources, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) would not compel mitigations, however the report lists significant mitigations, and the project developer is proposing to create a memorial to Martin V. Smith on-site, prominently display the iconic features of the Wagon Wheel Motel and restaurant, and photo-document the architectural qualities of the structures, save architectural features, create a video based oral history about Martin V. Smith, and two 30 minute TV programs about Wagon Wheel Junction and Martin V. Smith to be run on local cable channels. Peer Review of the Post/Hazeltine report concluded that the Wagon Wheel Motel did in fact meet criteria for landmark eligibility, so a second Peer Review was commissioned. Both the initial Peer Review by San Buenaventura Research Associates (of Santa Paula) and the second Peer Review by Applied Earthworks (of Fresno) contradicted the Post/Hazeltine report, and stated that the Wagon Wheel Motel, and Restaurant were eligible for landmark status, and in addition the El Ranchito restaurant and Wagon Wheel Bowling Alley may be eligible as well. In June 2008 the City of Oxnard began circulation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the proposed development. The EIR draft comment period is from May 30, 2008 to July 14, 2008. The draft EIR is available at the city of [http://developmentservices.cityofoxnard.org/Department.aspx?DepartmentID=7&DivisionID=76&ResourceID=364 Oxnard's Planning Webpage] .

On March 26th, 2007, the Ventura County Cultural Heritage Board, acting as the Oxnard Cultural Heritage Board ruled on the Wagon Wheel. The Board concluded that the Wagon Wheel Motel, Restaurant, and El Ranchito Restaurant were historically significant on the local level because of their association with Martin V. ("Bud") Smith and as an example of themed roadside architecture of the 1940s and 1950s. By unanimous vote, the seven-member board forwarded a recommendation of landmark designation for the motel buildings, office, and restaurant buildings, to the Oxnard City Council. Then in June 2008 the board added the Wagon Wheel Bowling Alley to their recommended landmark recommendation. The Oxnard City Council as the lead agency, will vote to determine if the Motel and buildings (on approximately 1.5 acres) become a local Oxnard City Landmark. Landmark designation of the site could require more environmental review under CEQA.

Since the Motel closed, Wagon Wheel gained popularity in the skateboarding community with the empty swimming pool. Skaters from all over the west coast, and even some from further, travelled to skateboard in a classic Motel swimming pool. Once the property owners caught on, they demolished part of the pool, and began dumping large pieces of furniture and debris. A southern California independent filmmaker created a short video of skateboarding, and can be viewed [http://www.artsington.com/video/WWmonty.mov Here]

References

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External links

* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/schafphoto/sets/72157606187890920 Wagon Wheel Photos on Flickr]

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