Steady flow of vows planned at Yuma wedding chapel

Lutes Gretna Green Wedding Chapel has gotten accustomed to Valentine's Day being one of its busiest days of the year.

And the Yuma County Superior Court Clerk's Office has noticed a slight increase in the number of couples hoping to be married on cupid's day, after a slight decrease from years past.

"Our licenses issued had gone down in 2007 for the month of February," said Superior Court Clerk Beverly Frame. "But at this point in time, we've gone up slightly in wedding licenses issued, not significantly.

"We've had a decline from 79 licenses in 2006 from the time frame of the first of February to the 14th of February. That number has dropped to 72 in 2007 and so far this month we've had about 76 in the month so far. I expect it to hit about 80 before Valentine's Day." Frame said.

"We may hit a high that we had a number of years ago, but we have an influx for the period. Nothing extremely high at this time. February and June are always the big wedding months," Frame said.

But at Lutes wedding chapel, Valentine's Day remains one of their busiest day.

"We're always booked up solid on Valentine's Day," said Billy Lutes, co-owner of the wedding chapel and of Lutes Casino.

The chapel, located 500 W. 1st St., has made some adjustments to business hours on the "most romantic day of the year," Lutes said.

"We've even extended our hours that day to accommodate as many as we can. We stay open later to get as many couples wed as possible.

"It's always been a popular time for us. We're booked solid that day."

Lutes said the wedding chapel has become somewhat of a family tradition for many Yuma couples. "We're marrying children of couples who we have wed in the past, and even grandchildren, too."