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I love taking a moment to share pieces of Cedar City’s history and this month I’d like to share about the El Escalante Hotel, which opened 100 years ago in March. The hotel was at Main and 200 North, kitty-corner from Main Street Park, where you will now find The Town and Country Best Western.
The hotel was part of the Union Pacific Railroad’s effort to promote the National Parks by bringing the passenger train to Cedar City in 1923. I had never been in the hotel rooms but had attended many events in the big social rooms on the lowest level of the building. There were many banquets including Lion’s Club entertainment, old folks’ parties, and concerts. The El Escalante Hotel was more than just a hotel. As an anchor on the corner of Main Street, it served as a community gathering space where, during the winter season, dances were held every Saturday night.
During the war, the hotel was used for staging for recruits who could stay for a night and catch the passenger trains easily from across the street. The short life of some 34 years was an integral part of Cedar’s history, as the Town and Country Inn has been for the last 54 years since. I think the City sold the El Escalante Hotel in 1970 for $135,000 to Lerin Porter and he replaced it with the Town and Country Inn.
In other news, this month we will be breaking ground on a $5 million passenger hold room expansion at the Cedar City Regional Airport. This much-needed expansion will make a 200-passenger hold room available as well as an improved baggage claim area. This expansion is made available by grants from the Federal Aviation Administration (FFA) and Cedar City. This will make our airport better able to handle larger passenger enplanements and arrivals such as the Boeing 737 and Airbus 320 aircraft.
We know one of the major concerns about our Airport is the frequency and destinations. We have been in meetings with SkyWest concerning our essential air service contract and have met with Cedar City native Chip Childs, who is the CEO and President of SkyWest, and his Marketing Director, Dan Belmont. SkyWest has been seriously affected by pilot shortages and is working diligently to remedy that.
They are proposing solutions with a charter service that can support our community with better flights in timing and frequency. We are working closely with SkyWest and will keep you all posted with progress.
- Mayor Garth O. Green
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