A grant program to help make Route 66 a neon corridor in Tulsa starts taking applications Monday.
The grants will provide dollar-for-dollar matches up to $10,000 for half the cost of new or refurbished neon signs along both alignments of the Mother Road in Tulsa.
The Tulsa Route 66 Commission started developing the grant program in July 2017.
"This is something that was identified very early on from citizens of Tulsa that they wanted to do, and now here’s something we can say, 'It’s done, it’s ready for you,'" said Tulsa Route 66 Commission Chair Rhys Martin.
The commission has $40,000 available for grants now, and there will be another $40,000 at the start of the new fiscal year. Commission member Amanda DeCort said there’s been interest from around two dozen people so far and from groups in every other state the Mother Road runs through.
"It’s pretty exciting to have someone say, 'Can you come speak at our modernism conference?' and, 'Can you help our city do this?'" DeCort said.
Cindy Turner will be among the first in line for a neon sign grant. The daughter of Billy Ray of Billy Ray’s BBQ fame wants to get the sign at her dad’s west Tulsa restaurant relit after more than 20 years.
"He asked his mother to write 'Billy Ray's,' and he had the sign made out of her handwriting. And since both Billy Ray and his mother are no longer with us, we’re very, very honored to be able to resurrect that sign, because it’s truly going to look the way that he always intended for it to look," Turner said.
More information about the grant program and application forms are at cityoftulsa.org/neongrant. There’s a free workshop April 23 at Circle Cinema to help people with the grant process.
