Sand & Sage Motel

16364 E Foothill Blvd., Fontana, CA
Phone: 909-822-9507

East < GO > West

The Sand and Sage is one of several vintage motels that still exist on Route 66 in Fontana. Most of the guest rooms are located in buildings behind the office, the pool is also back there. The motel has grown over the years, starting out with 12 rooms with at least some garages. Well the garages are long gone and the room count has increased to 20 or so.

The motel dates to the mid-late 1950s as far as I can tell so far. Not earlier than that because the land for the motel was bought by Pete O. Adair in 1956. Adair ran the motel at least into the late 1960s and owned it for 25 years before he passed away in 1982.

Beginning in 1935 Pete Adair had owned and operated a 24 hour Mobilgas station on the site of the Knight's Auto Camp at the intersection of Cajon Blvd., Highland Ave., and Mt Vernon Avenue. That lasted until the mid 1950s when the state bought the land as part of the path for I-15, which is now I-215 at that point..

At least by 1984 the motel appears to have had new owners or at least new operators.

Painted on brick and powered by neon this is one of the coolest signs along this stretch of the Mother Road. This is a great survivor as far as neon signs go. The word "motel" over the entrance to the left of this sign is also neon. The newer sign out by the street is a lot less impressive.

The Sand & Sage Motel is next door to the Fontana Motor Lodge, just west of Date St. on Foothill Blvd. The large parking lot out front makes me wonder if there was a restaurant in the same building as the office and owner/managers apartment, but I haven't found any reference to a cafe here.

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Vintage Advertising Highlights

(1959/60 AAA Tour Book)
12 rooms
12 Baths with showers
Well back from the highway
Large tastefully appointed rooms
Air conditioning
TVs
Thermostat controlled heat
Telephones
Some connecting rooms
Free morning coffee
Heated swimming pool
Patio
Garages
Phone VAlley 2 ----

Note: This is all pretty standard for a mid-50s motel, except for the garages which few mid-50s and later motel featured, they apparently didn't last too long before being converted to guest rooms.
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Photo(s): 2013