I e-mailed longtime Route 66er Jerry Ueckert of Edgewood, N.M., this week on another matter, but decided to ask him about his Valentine diner restoration project.

Ueckert purchased the diner, originally located in Magdalena, N.M., early last year and moved it to Route 66 in Edgewood. It’s an eight-stool Aristocrat model, first designed in the 1940s.

If you want to see a “before” photo of Ueckert’s diner, click here. The photo above is what is looks like now. Obviously, it looks a lot better.

I asked Ueckert whether he had a timetable on finishing the restoration:

I’ve gutted the interior and the project of hanging a floor in there has taken many directions. Much has to do with how to move the critter again, if need be, and with that particular job impending, it occurs to me that I’d like to pick it up on a whim and transport it to car shows, events, parades, etc. Now considering that I am getting somewhat older with each passing year, I would like to make that job as easy as possible. [...]

I am amazed that this rusting hulk still has substantial structural integrity. [...]

… I have gathered practically every element I need for the inside appearance, from stools, counters, menu board and antique register and phone. That part of the project should go fairly easily — at least a lot easier than working on this undercarriage, which was pretty much bent and distorted by previous moves.

So I guess the answer to your question is: Hmmm, I’m not sure. Just as soon as I can get there.

(Photo courtesy of Jerry Ueckert.)

Yesterday, I e-mailed Ned Leuchtner, owner of the restored Cool Springs Camp on Route 66 between Kingman and Oatman, Ariz., to ask him how things were going with Mohave County and his zoning troubles with the business. The county was giving him static because he was building a replica lodging cabin next door, to be used only as parking.

Leuchtner wrote:

We are going to have our final hearing with Mohave County for our zoning revision. We are told that it looks good to be reviewed and formally approved. I had to write a short story about what we are all about at Cool Springs and submit this the county fathers.

We have strived hard to promote Route 66 and be a positive reflection upon the county. But needless to say, you still have to go through the same process that anyone else goes through for zoning review and approval.

Thank goodness for our spirited team and our commitment to the cause.

We look forward to getting through this phase and becoming better than ever.

Leuchtner’s restoration of Cool Springs Camp received a Cyrus Avery Award for preservation. Cool Springs Camp was built in the 1920s and was severely damaged by fire in the 1960s. The remains of the long-closed business were literally blown up in 1991 during a movie shoot in for “Universal Soldier.”