Entry No. 23 — the Anchorage file — filed under: roadside-oddity
Spenard's Neon Palm Tree
“sold a pound of meth to an FBI informant in the basement”
A 33-foot steel palm tree — neon-originally, now LED-lit — stands on a gravel corner in Spenard, the last artifact of the Paradise Inn, a 1960s tiki-styled hotel whose final owner sold a pound of meth to an FBI informant in the basement and forfeited the property to the U.S. Marshals. The inn was bulldozed in 2019; the sign was nearly discarded during the federal cleanup before a legal battle returned it to government custody and eventually to private owner Cindy Berger, who spent $48,000 restoring it and re-electrified it on October 2, 2025. It doesn't appear on any Anchorage visitor list — no top-tens, no travel guides — just a softly glowing tropical anachronism at Spenard Road and 30th Avenue, surrounded by subarctic sky and "The Eyes of Spenard" mural on the wall behind it.
The move: Drive Spenard Road after dark so the palm's LED fronds glow properly against the Alaska night, then grab a drink at one of the neighborhood's dive bars within walking distance — it's the kind of corner that rewards showing up without a plan.
📍 Before you go The sign sits on a freestanding corner lot at Spenard Road and 30th Avenue, where the Paradise Inn once stood, so there's no building or entrance — you take it in from the street or pull into the small adjacent lot. It glows best in true darkness, which in Anchorage means the fall-through-spring shoulder months; under the near-midnight sun of June and July it reads as a daytime curiosity. The lot is private, so keep it respectful and quick. Spenard itself is a walkable, eccentric strip — pair the stop with one of the neighborhood's dive bars or diners nearby.
- 📍 Spenard
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Outdoors
Where: 3001 Spenard Road, Anchorage, AK 99503
Hours: Added 2026-06-09 — confirm current hours before you go.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: adn.com · alaskasnewssource.com
last checked: 2026-06-09