Volume 3 Issue 1
$4.99 Spring 2014
Serving Contracting Firms and the Arizona Community…
• Phoenix’s Heritage Square: the Nixon/Vietnam Link • Every Home is a Trailer: A-Arid State House Movers • Follow the Money: Mid-Century Modern Banks • Home Sweet Bethany (Road) Home • Commercial Signs: A Glowing Preservation Movement
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Arizona Contractor & Community
Publisher William Horner Billy@arizcc.com
Editor Douglas Towne Douglas@arizcc.com
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To serve Arizona Construction Firms and Community Then & Now…
Visit us at: www.arizcc.com Annual subscriptions. $16 - One year subscription $28 - Two year subscription Make check payable to: A.C.C. PO Box 6912, Glendale, AZ 85312 Printed at Lithotech Arizona Contractor & Community (ACC) magazine is published quarterly (spring, summer, fall, & winter). ACC is a professional publication designed for the contracting industry, engineers, architects, and others interested in Arizona and its history. Content including text, photographs or illustrations may not be reproduced without the written permission from the publisher. The publisher does not assume responsibility for unsolicited submissions. ACC reserves the right to reject any editorial and advertising material and reserves the right to edit all submitted content material. Arizona Contractor & Community Copyright © 2014
Volume.3 Issue 1 Spring 2014
CONTENTS 8. 12. 24. 26. 29. 30. 36. 38. 40. 46. 52. 58. 60. 68. 70. 72. 77. 78.
Editors’s Column: Commercial Signs: A Glowing Preservation Movement - Douglas Towne Construction Around Arizona - William Horner Industry Highlights Gravel Guru: The William Fisher Story J.J.M. Czep Arcosanti: Arizona’s Cutting-Edge Community Jennifer Giralo Arizona’s New Double-Barrel War Memorial: An Interview with Secretary of State Ken Bennett William Horner Everything Has Meaning: Design Elements of Arizona’s World War II Memorial - Rich Pawelko Ringing True: Bells from the USS Arizona Reconstructing the Past: The Preservation of Heritage Square - Douglas Towne In It For the Long Haul: A-Arid State House Movers - Roberta Graham Follow the Money: Phoenix Mid-Century Modern Branch Banks - Donna Reiner Break-Through Fencing: Allstate Rent a Fence Home Sweet Bethany Home - John Bueker Concrete Results: Phoenix Mid-Century Banks William Horner Construction Site Security - Bradford Knights Digging Through the Archives: Ajax Contracting - William Horner Construction Marketplace Bid Results - Bidjudge ACC Advertisers Index Front Cover The Burgess Carriage House is moved from ��� East Taylor Street to Historic Heritage Square to serve as the park’s headquarters. Inset photo shows dignitaries when the Rosson House was named the city’s first Protocol House, a special designation that allows city receptions to occur there. See story on page ��.
Commercial Signs: A Glowing Preservation Movement Douglas Towne
C
Images courtesy of author
alamity was miraculously turned into opportunity in the wake of the violent demise of Mesa’s most famous denizen. A powerful wind gust in 2011 leveled the “Diving Lady,” a well-known neon sign that featured a shapely blonde aquanaut who performed an immaculate swan dive in three animated movements. Rose, as she was known in some circles, finished her dive in the pool symbolized by the lighting of a single strand of blue tubing.
Since 1960, the 78-foot-tall roadside display had attracted overheated tourists into the cool confines of the adjacent Starlite Motel along U.S. Highway 60. News stories carried photos and video of the crushed sign lying in the parking lot of the Starlite Motel and generated a surprising public outcry. This was somewhat unexpected since for many years such
oversized advertisements were considered by many to be garish roadside blights. When the motel’s owner, Bob Patel, indicated he couldn’t afford to restore the sign, collectors inquired about purchasing salvageable parts for display. It seemed the Diving Lady’s performance had ended after 51 years…. Individuals determined to refurbishing the sign banded together to create the Mesa Historic Society. Led by Vic Linoff, the newly formed preservation group became the driving force that boosted awareness of the sign’s beloved landmark status. They raised $120,000 through grants, private donations, and in-kind services to return the swimsuit-attired damsel to her pedestal overlooking the city. The triumphant relighting ceremony took place in April 2013, attended by dignitaries, including Mesa Mayor Scott Smith. The Diving Lady was just one of many eye-catching signs used by Valley businesses before the advent of sign ordinances which limited size and design. Such advertisements were prominent along preinterstate highways such as U.S. 60 (Main Street) in Mesa where there was stiff competition to have the biggest, brightest, most appealing thematic sign to attract customers. This was especially important with touristoriented businesses where consumers had little or no pre-existing knowledge (pre-Yelp) of the quality of an establishment’s meals or overnight accommodations. Commercial signage changed from neon to less glamorous plastic-backlit illumination and became more standardized in the 1970s. Across: Blakely Service Station at Roosevelt Street and Central Avenue, 1959. Left: A.J. Bayless Market, 1959. Above: Velda Rose Motel postcard, 1965. Top right: The Diving Lady at the Starlite Motel, 1994.
Arizona Contractor & Community
Although grandfathered neon signs erected before restrictive regulations were allowed to remain in place, they went out of style and were considered dated advertisements. With their fragile glass tubing, neon signs were also expensive to maintain, and they often advertised marginally profitable businesses in challenging neighborhoods. Over time, the few surviving neon signs were further hindered by ordinances that did not allow their temporary removal for repairs. This was a nationwide problem; but some enlightened (pun intended) communities led a paradigm shift in the perception of historical neon signs. Vintage signs have been restored and relit, thanks to preservation projects such as the Living Urban Museum of Electronic and Neon Signs (LUMENS) in Los Angeles, the National Park Service’s Route 66 Corridor, Save Our Signs in Tennessee, and Historic Landmark Signs in Tucson. The latter city proactively approved a program in 2011 which encourages the maintenance, restoration, and reuse of vintage signs. To increase the public’s awareness of these important pieces of commercial folk art, advocates published Tucson the Neon Pueblo: A Guide to Tucson’s Midcentury Vintage Advertising. Four orphaned Tucson signs have since been refurbished and redisplayed along West Drachman Street in a partnership with Pima Community College. Phoenix enthusiasts are mimicking the progressive strides Tucson has made in protecting its sign heritage. Alison King, who advocates midcentury architecture through her organization, Modern Phoenix, recently created the volunteer Postwar Architecture task force of Greater Phoenix. The task force promotes, protects, and preserves our midcentury architectural heritage - including signs - so future generations can appreciate the Valley’s exceptional built environment. The group seeks to inspire Phoenix, and the rest of the state, to update their sign ordinances to reflect maintenance necessities and recognize the tourism value of historic signs. The task force is documenting unique midcentury signs that help communicate the story of businesses and neighborhoods. The inventory includes signs’ condition and threat level and those that are stored with the intention of eventually being redisplayed. This preemptive sign preservation strategy will hopefully allow private advertisements that have become community landmarks, like the Diving Lady, to keep illuminating our common history. Left: Statgecoach Motel, 4311 E. Van Buren Street, 1951. Top right: Tucson’s Neon Guide.
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