Take a step back in time with the reopening of the Colony House Motor Lodge

by: Zoe Mowery

ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — The Colony House Motor Lodge, a 69-room roadside motel, has reopened to guests after closing in 2018. It first opened in 1959 and was nicknamed the “guest room of South Roanoke.” 

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2023 for being a prime example of roadside Googie architecture. That’s a type of “futuristic” architecture, which is influenced by car culture, jets, and the space age. It was popular from the 1940s to the 1970s. Some pop-culture icons with similar inspirations include The Jetsons and the first-ever McDonald’s.

While the lodge has all-new upgrades, owners still kept its original style and vibe.

“The owners wanted to make sure that the property had the charm that it had in 1959,” said Joy Barlow, the General Manager, “You can tell with the roofs, the way they’re tilted, like the Blue Ridge Mountains, and they did capture the charm as you’ll see in the rooms with the decor. They tried to keep all of it, you know, along the same lines, but with modern amenities.”

When the original hotel was built, they picked the spot strategically to help connect downtown Roanoke to areas south and west. Now, it still does just that, located right on Franklin Road, a continually growing corridor.

“It is a great area. It’s growing, of course, with all of Carilion and the medical school, and there’s just so much potential here,” Barlow said. “We are just excited to give Roanoke another option for its visitors to stay.”

Right now, the hotel is in a soft opening, only having a few rooms of the nearly 70 open at the moment; however, the general manager says the reviews have been nothing but great.

“They love the architecture. They love the look of the colony house. It takes you back to, you know, the 1950s, from the refrigerator to the design of the property that has remained the same,” Barlow said.

Also on the property sits a pool, gym, conference room, and much more.

The hotel does plan on hosting a large grand opening. They say to keep an eye on their social media pages for that date.