Goodbye, Fire Station 30. Hello, Station 66.
The fire station at 14333 E 11th St. in Tulsa has been renamed in order to fit the theme of Route 66. The idea came from Capt. Jim Moseby, who grew up near what's now Station 66 and was inspired by other Mother Road developments in Tulsa.
Fire Chief Ray Driskell said the change means a lot to the firefighters and the surrounding community.
"They understand by doing this, there’s going to be a lot of visitors that come by here 24 hours a day from across the country, and those are the ones who are going to visit with those visitors, tell them what’s going on, what’s happened here at this station over the years and, more importantly, what they want to see happen in the future," Driskell said.
Driskell said both trucks went out on a fire Wednesday night, and hearing Engine 66 on the radio will "take some getting used to."
Tulsa City Councilor Connie Dodson hopes the change help catch her east Tulsa district up on Route 66 revitalization, which has happened more in west and central Tulsa.
"My hope is that we will now bring in east Tulsa, meet in the middle and have Route 66 in Tulsa be one of the greatest stretches of Route 66 that visitors can travel as they make this trek across our country," Dodson said.
Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell said Station 66 is an attempt to play to Oklahoma’s strengths and boost Tulsa's profile among Route 66 tourists..
"When we talk about those that travel the Mother Road, that travel this road, yes, it’s people from around the country, but it’s people from around the world. We have multiple languages being spoken in Tulsa pretty much every day," Pinnell said.
Along with the name change, Station 66 trucks have new decals, the building has a new sign, the house has a new logo and the city is working on bringing a historic fire truck to the station for permanent display.