The Wagon Wheel Motel & Restaurant

Above, the Wagon Wheel Motel & Restaurant during better days.

The Wagon Wheel Motel & Restaurant

by Armand Vaquer

Back in the early to mid-1960s, whenever we traveled up U.S. 101 to Santa Barbara, Morro Bay or Lake Casitas in Southern California, we knew we were approaching the Oxnard and Ventura areas when we came to mile-long rows of eucalyptus trees lining both sides of U.S. 101. Most of those trees were taken out when the highway was widened. So now there's only one long stretch of eucalyptus trees along the northern edge of the freeway.

Another sign that we were in the Oxnard-Ventura area was when we reached the Wagon Wheel Motel and Restaurant. We would usually stop for breakfast there. It was a main landmark in the area. Unfortunately, like all things man-made, "progress" has made it obsolete. It is no longer a major stop. In fact, it has been closed down since 2006.

Above, the Wagon Wheel Motel & Restaurant in May 2009.

According to Wikipedia:

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.

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 (6 km) north of Oxnard and six miles (10 km) south of Ventura. After its completion, it became the most recognizable mid-century landmark on the 101 Ventura Freeway in Ventura County.

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. In June 2008 the City of Oxnard began circulation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the proposed development. The Oxnard City Council, voted that the Motel and buildings not be listed as an Oxnard City Landmark. Preservationists and architects from the community and as far away as Los Angeles were on hand at Planning Commission and City Council Meetings. The San Buenaventura Conservancy, a local preservation organization, commented at all the public meetings, and then filed an appeal to the Planning Commission decision certifying the EIR; claiming that there was no cause for a Statement of Overriding conditions that would allow the demolition. The Oxnard City Council voted for EIR certification at the appeal. The City Council Vote approving the Project came on January 27, 2009.

As of January 2009, the EIR was certified and the Project has been accepted by the Oxnard City Council, demolition was scheduled to begin as soon as documentary mitigations are completed. On March 2, 2009 the San Buenaventura Conservancy a local non-profit preservation advocacy group – with attorney Susan Brandt-Hawley – filed suit in the Ventura County Superior Court against the City of Oxnard, claiming that the City’s approval of the Oxnard Village Specific Plan project violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The project proposes the demolition of the Wagon Wheel Motel. The Conservancy argues that the project can be feasibly accomplished without demolition, and CEQA therefore does not allow the Class 1 impact. The lawsuit requests issuance of a peremptory writ ordering the City to set aside its approval of the project pending compliance with CEQA.

Recently, I paid a stop at the old Wagon Wheel while heading back into Los Angeles from a job in Santa Barbara and took the photos on this page. It is a sad sight to see. It has fallen into disrepair since its closing. Hopefully, it can be saved and restored to its former glory.

Above, some of the motel's rooms in May 2009.

Above, the main building and restaurant. Will it be saved?