February 2026.
The South Wind Motel is a restored example of a mid-century motel, a typology that combined the amenities of the hotel with automobile accessibility. The Midwest doesn’t really have the fancy, themed Mid-Century Modern motels of the West Coast, but the South Wind is a pretty good exemplar of a more modest design, and its neon sign is excellent (though a modern creation).
The South Wind Motel is located at 919 South High Street in the Brewery District neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by Victorian houses to the north and south, High Street to the east, and Wall Street to the west.
History
Historic postcard of the motel with its original sign. (Wikimedia)
The South Wind Motel opened in 1959. It was first owned by golfer Benny Newpoff and designed by Columbus architect Harold Schofield in the Mid-Century Modern style, though it borrows certain elements (such as its roof) from the Prairie School. Its location along South High Street was a reasonable distance from I-70, a common placement for newly built motels. Upon opening, the motel had 25 rooms, and advertised modern amenities such as color TV, carpeted floors, and a continental breakfast. It would operate successfully in the Brewery District through the following decades.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the South Wind Motel had begun to decline, along with the surrounding neighborhood. It had begun to rent rooms by the hour, which meant they were being used for less than savory purposes, and the motel eventually gained a reputation for crime. One of the current owners stated: “In the 1990s it was known as a ‘hot pillow joint.’ This lobby used to have a window walk-up or drive-up so people would drive through, get the key to the room, and go to the room. The pillows were still hot.” A “hot pillow motel” is a euphemism for one that is frequented by couples or prostitutes to conduct their…services, as the bed’s pillows would supposedly still be warm after the previous guests had finished. Neighbors reminisced that the second-floor walkway was a palace where drugs were openly purchased. It became known for several incidents:
Greg Lashutka, who was running for mayor of Columbus in 1991, had issues with his campaign after a controversy at the motel a decade prior had resurfaced. Lashutka and his friend Linda Fisher were at a nearby tavern in 1982, when a sex worker stole Fisher’s coat (which contained her keys and ID) and brought it to the motel. The hotel staff wouldn’t allow Lashutka to enter the room she was in, so he called the police. The motel’s owner at the time alleged Lashutka had inappropriately used Columbus police to settle a private dispute. Lashutka ultimately won the election, however.
In 1996, a motel guest leaving the Tremont Lounge, a nearby gay bar, was killed. In 2002, the motel’s clerk was shot while the office was being robbed. A Columbus firefighter’s testimony was key to arresting the suspects, as he admitted that he and his romantic partner attempted to purchase cocaine from them.
Google Maps snapshot of the South Wind Motel in November 2015.
By 2007, when Google Maps first showed South Wind, it had been heavily altered. The original sign was replaced by a cheap plastic sign in the 1990s, and the dark wood panels across the High Street facade were replaced by plywood and painted. By this time, the area was beginning to gentrify.
In 2021, the motel was purchased by Kelley Companies for $535,000, which renovated it into a mid-century themed, upscale motel. This work included replacement fixtures and furniture that is mid-century inspired, though sustainable features such as solar panels and rainwater tanks were also included. Its new sign was inspired by other mid-century signs across Columbus, such as Planks Cafe, Peanut Shop, and Rife’s Market. The motel reopened in July 2022 and was a finalist in the 2023 Columbus Landmarks James B. Recchie Design Award competition. It currently houses 19 rooms and three suites, the latter of which combined smaller rooms into one.
Photos
The east facade of the South Wind Motel is very Prairie-like:
The shallowly-pitched roof with widely overhanging eaves, as well as the comparably short height versus a long width, are common features on Prairie style houses. It could be argued that the stone is too, but here it’s just a veneer instead of being part of the actual structure. Motels commonly have a porte-cochere to check in and lead to the parking lot, as this one does.
Love how this photo of the sign came out:
It’s actually more stylish than the original, with some Googie flair such as the cursive font and star. The “MOTEL” portion below is closer to the original sign, however. A dead giveaway towards its age is the “BOOK ONLINE” label.
A closer look at some material details:
Again, the stone that makes up the bottom portion is probably a veneer over a wood frame or something similar. The aluminum window frames are original to the building, but the glass itself has been replaced. The stained wood panels are replacements that are meant to recreate the original cladding in that area. I think the “NO VACANCY” sign is modern as well.
The parking lot:
I’m not a huge fan of automobile accommodation dominating the form of a building, as was increasingly common beginning with Modern architecture, but it is essential to a motel’s expression nonetheless. Parking takes center stage, with the motel rooms fronting the lot and accessible from it. In an area defined by dense late 19th and early 20th century houses and garages, it is very odd to have this much open space.
Looking east at the rear of the office section:
I wonder if the wide span of the driveway is meant to be another Prairie School touch (though it is not a cantilever due to the pillars on the end).
Through the opening:
The doors have been repainted with prominent room numbers, keeping up with the theming of the rest of the motel:
Larger or less sprawling motels generally have two floors, which front the parking lot, and the second is reached via a staircase:
As I branch out a bit more away from the buildings that are my favorites, I’ve enjoyed looking at buildings like the South Wind Motel. Mid-Century Modernism and Googie architecture can be just as kitschy and fun as Victorian architecture was, and in the same manner, these buildings are frequently defaced by “water and stupid men” over time to be more banal.
Sources:
https://www.southwindstay.com/learn/history-of-the-south-wind-motel
https://davehoekstra.com/2024/08/26/the-south-wind-of-columbus-ohio/
https://www.columbusnavigator.com/south-wind-motel-renovation/
No comments:
Post a Comment