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I Love Lucy and How the Ball Family Arrived in the Verde Valley
After you turn into Cottonwood from SR260 onto the 89A, just past the drive
named Camino Real, you may notice on your left a big arrow announcing The
View Motel, swooping up a mysterious drive. This motel has an outstanding view
and a unique history. It has been owned by the Ball family since 1977, and was
originally purchased through the sale of three other of their Cottonwood lodgings.
First, let me give you a little Ball Family history. When Lucy and Desi Arnaz
(character name Ricky Ricardo) divorced in the 50s, Lucille Desiree’s (nee Ball)
brother, Fred Ball, had recently lost his job in the film industry. Everyone needed
a change, so Fred’s next job was to go search out land in the desert. One of the
brokers Fred worked with had a stunning cousin named Nazoma Roznos’s (Zo),
and the rest is history.
Fred and Zo married, and because of her roots here, they purchased numerous
pieces of land in Cottonwood. When they moved to town permanently in 1970,
they first bought the Motor Inn Trailer Court. Still a trailer park today, it is located
at the corner of Coconino and N 16th Street.
Sometime between 1970 and 1977 they purchased two more lodging properties,
starting with the Verde Valley Motel. According to Zo and Fred’s son Geoff Ball,
the Motel was, “so cute, hidden by all the growth and mesquite bushes. It had just a
little dirt drive, and was a little rock thing.” It had only five rooms, and Lucy’s mom
Dee Dee stayed in Room #5 every Thanksgiving to cook dinner for all of them.
That little Verde Valley Motel is now Concho’s Mexican Restaurant, and still a sweet
little rock building right on Main Street. The current restaurant’s booth seating was
the Motel Office back then. The area to the left with a patio in front of the parking,
and the cashier and kitchen inside, was the five rooms for lodging, each with their
own bathroom.
Lastly they bought The Little Daisy Motel, with the same name and location as
today. As a side note: some consider the spot in front of The Little Daisy the
geographical center of the State of Arizona. When I look at a map of our State
I concur, but back to the Ball Family. In 1977, they sold the Motor Inn, the Verde
Valley Motel, and The Little Daisy to purchase The View Motel. “A good draw
for folks rambling into Cottonwood who are up for stumbling upon a place
without a plan,” Geoff told me, reminiscing the words of his father Fred. Today,
The View Motel is still owned by the Ball Family, by Geoff and his sister April
Jackson, who remain in the area. For bookings and rates, visit:
https://www.theviewmotel.com
DTPR MAGAZINE #15-2: March - April 2025
Photography provided by: Geoff Ball
Fred and Lucy in Costume
Fred and Lucy Boarding The Train