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Brochure circa 1970s: Courtesy of Larry Passaro
 
 
 
 
 
Above: Winter Park morphed to become an unusual property offering standard guest rooms outfitted as living rooms!
 
 
 

Rocket Man...
Like many Motor Lodges, Winter Park featured a futuristic-fantastic rocket slide in its playground!

At about the same time as the Howard Johnson Company was eliminated from the face of the planet, Winter Park lost the Howard Johnson moniker. Subsequently the location was downsized to 123 guest rooms and renamed the Plaza Inn. Listings in AAA Tourbooks indicated that it had been geared to longer term lodgers.

Its fortunes finally waned completely, and the entire once elaborate and highly visible former Howard Johnson's was razed. By the early 2000s all that was left was just scarred earth and a couple of palm trees. In 2006 not even the palm trees remained as the entire site and adjacent parcels were redeveloped into a super-sized big box retail store.
 
 
 
 
Satellite& aerial views © Microsoft Corp
 
Below: Having been demolished, Winter Park's site was vacant for an extended period of time. However by 2006 a Home Depot came to occupy its former grounds leaving no trace of what had been a significant orange roofed landmark.
 
 
 
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