This project is to document the current state of motels and motor lodges as weekly living space for the working homeless that were the places to stay in the golden era of automobile travel prior to the advent of the modern destination hotels. All images will include the signage. All of the motels in this project will be in use; no abandoned or fenced properties will be included.
All of the images will be at night for the surreal appearance that reflects the temporal existence of the motels. Some of the images will have light trails from traffic that serve as ghosts of past traffic, tying the motels current use as weekly living space for the working homeless with their grander past as luxury living space for fun and relaxation. These properties were the premier places to stay in Reno when they were built, now they are living spaces for the working homeless that cannot afford an apartment; however, have enough money to pay the weekly rates for these motels.
The modern destination hotels are designed in such a way that the guests never have to leave the property, which eliminates their need to travel by car in many cases. This shift in mode of travel away from cars is a part of the reason that the motels and motor lodges started to decline. The motels in this project are the ones that managed to survive by adapting to a different client base, the working homeless.
