Neon has been added to the arch stretching across Beale Street in Kingman. This new addition added the much needed oomph to the recently built signage that continues to attract more and more visitors to the city. LED back lit Route 66 shields now can change color to the season. Tonight they glowed green for the holiday season. Great conclusion to a wonderful night after the Very Merry Parade of Lights.  The Arch was completed with only LED lighting on  July 6 2018.

First proposed in a Kingman wayfinding plan 15 years ago, the sign was envisioned as “the most important gateway into the historic downtown area.”a Most of the signs recommended in the plan have been long since completed; you’ll recognize them as the oversized pink Route 66 shields along the roadside with information about what’s ahead. The arch, however, would be a bold undertaking, a statement of community pride.

That effort began in 2015 when the Kingman Chamber of Commerce was selected as one of the top 50 finalists in the nationwide America’s Best Communities Competition sponsored by Frontier Communications, DISH Network, CoBank, and The Weather Channel. Kingman was awarded $50,000 to construct a Community Revitalization Plan, of which the Arch became the cornerstone project. The Chamber handed the project over to City engineers the next year and after much discussion over the placement and design, it has finally been erected.