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Update: The Cathedral of Junk lives on!

This has not been a good week for roadside oddities. First, Ohio's Touchdown Jesus was razed by God himself, and now the City of Austin, Texas, has forced the closure and dismantling of the long-standing Cathedral of Junk.

The immense, interactive, multilevel sculpture comprising countless found items — crutches, mailboxes, bicycles, bottles, typewriters, you name it — has stood for 21 years as one of Austin's most loved folk-art sculptures and a definitive example of the attitude that gave rise to the city's motto "Keep Austin Weird."

Unfortunately, city officials threw a wet blanket on the installation back in March when they began ordering changes and demanding permits. Since that time, the Cathedral's creator, Vince Hannemann, along with a small army of volunteers, had been working to bring the sculpture up to code and keep it open. The city had even been fairly cooperative in extending deadlines to make preserving the iconic structure possible. The Austin mayor himself contacted Vince back in May to try to help things along. ... Continued

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I've just been informed by a fellow detourist and fan of Weird Texas that the Cathedral of Junk, Austin's towering backyard monument consisting of old bicycles, typewriters, crutches and tons of other metal detritus, has come under fire from the city government!

Despite its being a part of the Austin landscape for the last 20 years, the city, in response to a recent complaint, gave the Cathedral's creator, Vince Hannemann, notice that he must either bring his creation up to local code or they will destroy his property.

I spoke with Hannemann today and he said there were absolutely no issues when he talked to officials as recently as six months ago, but they've now taken a firm stance against his unapproved, permit-lacking structure. It's another sad example of a city failing to recognize its true cultural landmarks. ... Continued

Weird Arizona fans should be well familiar with the decaying "meat rocket" that sat for years off Highway 69 in Prescott, Arizona. Purchased years ago by local Steve LaVigne, the 1950s-era rocket that once advertised Luer Quality Meats in parades across the country had been waiting patiently among a collection of vintage trucks and buses, its future up in the air.

On a return trip to Prescott for a recent book signing, I tried to get in touch with Steve to cash in on a promise to get a look inside the Luer Rocket and to find out if he had any new plans for the Space Age missile. Problem was, the contact information I had for him was out of date and I was unable to reach him.

However, by an amazing coincidence, Steve happened to be shopping at the Costco that was hosting the signing on the very day I was there, and spotted the image of the rocket on page 237 as another patron was flipping through the book. Once we each realized who the other was, we began to chat enthusiastically about the rocket, and that's when I learned the bittersweet news: the Luer Rocket was gone! ... Continued

A big thanks to all the Phoenix residents who stopped by to chat with me and grab a personalized copy of Weird Arizona on Saturday. I had a great time meeting everyone and hearing about your adventures.

Now, for those of you waiting to hear about the Prescott and Tucson dates, I've finally gotten confirmation. They are as follows:

Prescott
Saturday, January 23
11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Costco at 3911 Highway 69

Tucson
Sunday, January 24
11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Costco at 6255 E. Grant Road

By the way, I'm told that if you don't have a Costco member's card, you can ask for a day pass.