Daytime views of the Villa Roma Motel sign on the Strip. Information about the sign is available in the Southern Nevada Neon Survey Data Sheet.
Site address: 220 Convention Center Dr
Sign details: Just west of the Somerset is the Villa Roma Motel. The only significant signage is located in the pylon side on the edge of the street. The pylon resides on the north side of Convention Center drive with the property facing east/west.
Sign condition: Structure 4 Surface 4 Lighting 4
Sign form: Pylon
Sign-specific description: Just west of the Somerset is the Villa Roma Motel. The pylon resides on the north side of the street with the property facing east/west. The sign consists of a tall white steel pole supporting two double backed cabinets, along with decorative raceways, as well as a logo cabinet. About halfway up the pole, an internally lit, double backed, cabinet cantilevers off of the south side of the pole, facing east/west also. The top of the sign is two horizontal rectangular cabinets, sitting one on top of the other, in close proximity to each other. The cabinets possess aspects of design which add a bit of flavor to plain geometric shape. The faces of the cabinet themselves are concave, bowing in along the length. The maroon surface is also fluted vertically, dividing the surface up into a pattern of vertical rectangles. Along the width of each one of the cabinets, smaller black cabinets run vertically along the edge. These cabinets are adorned with maroon graphically painted scroll work. Channel letters spell the name of the establishment on the two cabinets. The thinner, top cabinet possesses the channel letter text spelling, "Villa Roma," painted white on the interiors. The bottom cabinet's surface contains the text "Motel" in larger all capital channel letter. The interiors of both of both sets of letters are filled with neon. Attached to the bottom of the cabinet, an oval shaped cabinet resides on the north side of the cabinet. It is treated with same maroon color paint ,but the face is adorned with "vacancy" painted on the surface. "No" is spelled in neon as well as being vacancy being overlayed with neon as well. Two pairs of maroon raceways shoot out of the top of either side of the cabinet into the air, then arch inward, meeting at a common point in the center. The spot where each one of the raceway meets, a pseudo oval shaped, internally lit, double backed cabinet professes the logo for the Villa Roma Motel. The logo consists of A capital letter "V" sitting over a Letter "R" in red paint. The raceways also protrudes through the bottom of the cabinet on either side, for a short distance. The edges of the raceways are lined with incandescent bulbs.
Sign - type of display: Neon; Incandescent
Sign - media: Steel; Plastic
Sign animation: Chasing, flashing, oscillating
Notes: The text letters on the porte-cochere and entrances hold a three step animation: The incandescent bulbs all oscillate rapidly inside the letters, then steady burn on, and finally come to rest in the off position. The sequence then repeats. The main pylon sign carries several different sections which all hold different animation patterns. Inside the middle sculptural piece, the incandescent bulbs, which encrust the star shapes, oscillate in a twinkling fashion. The bulbs which border the outlying portion of the middle section chase each other, with the inner row running downward, and the outer row chasing upward. The double rows of incandescent bulbs that create the outer border, also chase each other in a similar fashion. The outer-most lane, of the double rowed bulbs, animate chasing downward, while the inner is treated with chasing animation, which chases upward. The bulbs, which encrust the bottom of the main marquee oscillate, as well as the bulbs on the widths edge of the main message center. The incandescent bulbs, which fill the text in the main marquee of the pylon, oscillate rapidly while the vertical red bars of neon, animate behind them. They star in the middle and chase out to either side illuminating all of the bars, then chase back to the center leaving them dark. They then start all illuminated, and curtain open to either side, then animates, chasing each other from either side back to the middle again. Once all illuminated, they flash off, on, off, on, then off. The marquee seems to be the one with a set sequence. On the main message board, the golden image of the cowboy animates in three stages, rocking back and forth, as if riding the bull. The letters, which adorn the tower of the building, animate in sequence. The incandescent bulbs in each letter light up individually one at a time from left to right, then once all are illuminated, they each oscillate one at a time, from left to right. They then light up continuously from left to right again one at a time, and then turn off. The letters, which run vertically on the northwest side of the tower, also have the same sequence.
Sign environment: The Villa Roma's area is interesting in itself. Convention Center Drive runs east west between the Strip and paradise road, and is home to a unique mix of signage and structures of close but not identical functions. It plays home to the Greek Isles, a bank building, dry cleaners, the Royal Casino, a giant parking lot for the Las Vegas Hilton, as well as the dying Silver Saddle. It stands as a reminder of a roadside motel that is still present, within the heart of an evolving Strip.
Surveyor: Joshua Cannaday
Survey - date completed: 2002
Sign keywords: Chasing; Pylon; Neon; Incandescent; Steel; Plastic

Paulette R. Nelson's life in Las Vegas is a contrast of images. She recalls riding her horse across the wide-open desert, as well as embracing the technological changes that rapidly impacted the UNLV library. Paulette honed her life skills as farm girl growing up just south of Mandan, North Dakota. She attended North Dakota State University. A post-graduation summer as a volunteer in Kenya, sparked an interest in adventure and travel and she enlisted for four years in the U.S. Air Force. Rather than enter as an officer, she opted to be enlisted personnel so that she could receive technical training. In 1981, Paulette migrated to Las Vegas, where she had friends at Nellis Air Force Base. She worked at the Nevada Test Site for the next two years. Then, while looking for a new job so that she could pursue an engineering degree, she was offered a position in the UNLV library cataloging department. It was a career path change that she never regretted. She eventually became the Supervisor of the Architecture Studies Library; a position she held for nine years until her retirement Among the highlights of her career was being involved in the change to an electronic catalog system and being on the planning committee for Lied Library.