Springfield will soon have a new monument – just in time for the Route 66 Centennial Kickoff Celebration April 30-May 3.
A proposal to accept $267,000 in State of Missouri appropriation funds for street and right-of-way improvements surrounding the Queen's Gate 66 monument was unanimously approved by city council during a recent meeting.
The State of Missouri has already allocated $1 million to Visit Springfield to manage the project. The appropriation would take the recently approved funds from this total and transfer it to the City of Springfield to make improvements.
The improvements are intended to help prepare for the installation of the Queen's Gate 66 monument near the intersection of St. Louis Street and Glenstone Avenue, as well as ensure long-term durability and proper integration into existing right-of-way infrastructure.
The 20-foot-tall, illuminated monument, designed by Kansas City-based Farris Wheel Studios and Amie Jacobsen, features a stylized depiction of a crown to represent Springfield as the "Queen City of the Ozarks."
Gordon Elliott, owner of the nearby Best Western Route 66 Rail Haven, provided right of way and additional parking at a property adjacent to the Rail Haven that he also owned, to accommodate parking for visitors who want to take photos at the monument, according to city officials.
Visit Springfield CEO Mark Hecquet said the monument is intended to give Springfield tourists a "gateway" to Route 66.
"About a year and a half ago, we started talking about the visitor experience on Route 66 in Springfield, and what that led to is a conversation about a sense of arrival into Springfield."
Hecquet also shared other plans for generating interest in Springfield's section of Route 66, including a new "birthplace plaza" located where the first telegram requesting Route 66 was sent and Route 66 shield sculptures all over the city.
A public dedication of the monument will take place at 11 a.m., Friday, May 1.
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