January 22, 2026

Route 66 Grant Fuels El Reno Downtown Revitalization

The City of El Reno, Oklahoma, continues to build momentum along historic Route 66 with the award of $725,000 from the Oklahoma Route 66 Commission, advancing the next phase of its downtown revitalization vision known as The Hub. 

Freese and Nichols supported the City early by helping turn long-standing community goals and adopted plans into a competitive, grant-ready project. Our landscape architecture and funding resources teams worked closely with City leadership to develop an application that clearly demonstrated project readiness, strong local investment and measurable tourism and economic impacts. The application built on El Reno’s proven track record of managing complex projects and more than $11 million in prior state and federal grant awards, all delivered on time and within budget.

The award marks El Reno’s second major Route 66 grant. Earlier funding helped transform a vacant 1950s service station into The Filling Station, the visitor center which now welcomes travelers from across the United States and around the world. Since opening in May 2025, the Filling Station has had more than 4,000 visitors from all 50 states and 68 different countries. That success laid the foundation for continued investment along the Route 66 corridor and strengthened El Reno’s position as a destination community.

Located just south of The Filling Station at Sunset Drive and Choctaw Avenue, The Hub will redevelop a key downtown intersection that has fallen into disrepair and generated little economic activity. The project will create a mobility-focused destination that provides parking and safe access for tour buses, RVs, electric vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians, while offering a direct connection to downtown El Reno.

Planned improvements include expanded parking, EV charging stations, public art and placemaking elements, traffic and utility upgrades, improved crosswalks and a permanent home for the restored Twisters movie replica Heritage Express Trolley. Together, these improvements support the City’s goal of encouraging visitors to stay longer, explore downtown and contribute to the local economy.

Freese and Nichols also helped the City clearly show how The Hub advances priorities outlined in the Route to the Future Comprehensive Plan 2040 and the 2021 Sunset Drive and Route 66 Corridor Study. The application highlighted El Reno’s population growth, increasing visitation and readiness for higher travel volumes ahead of the Route 66 Centennial in 2026.

Previous City investments dedicated to site acquisition, remediation and corridor improvements demonstrated a strong level of project readiness. That preparation positioned El Reno to successfully compete for Route 66 funding and move forward with transforming an underutilized area into a welcoming, visitor-ready destination.

How Freese and Nichols’ Funding Team Can Help

For more than 25 years, Freese and Nichols has helped clients secure more than $8 billion in loan and grant funding for critical infrastructure projects. This includes more than $5.5 billion in Texas state funding, more than $444 million through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, and more than $215 million through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund.

Freese and Nichols funding specialists, engineers, and environmental scientists assist clients with abridged and full applications, Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund programs, and project information forms. The team also provides engineering and environmental planning and design services, advises on funding program compliance and advocates for clients and their projects before funding agencies.

For more information, contact Kate Burum at kate.burum@freese.com or Mark Evans at mark.evans@freese.com.