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More bang for the buck The building that once housed the Checkerboard Dance Hall in Prairie du Chien has been revamped and saved from the wrecking ball. That building now is the home of Big Bang, Fireworks & More and is owned by Mike Calloway of Ferryville. "We literally breathed new life into this building," said Calloway, who also owns R &M Liquidators of Readstown and Ferryville. "We've brought back a landmark. We spent a lot to bring this uniquely designed building back." Big Bang, Fireworks & More opened May 9 and offers a vast array of fireworks as well as many other items to be sold year-round, including a variety of tools, giftware, house wares, collector knives, greeting cards, toys and many other items. Calloway said that the ceiling was taken out of the building and new insulation has been installed as well as 11,000 square feet of sheet rock. The trusses have been painted and the building has been rewired. More than 500 gallons of primer and paint has been applied to the building and the floor has been cleaned, revealing the checkerboard pattern. It will take about three more years to get the building finished, said Calloway, who noted that other developers had wanted to purchase the building and "doze it under." The building has quite a history and many "older" folks remember when it was the Checkerboard for many years, beginning in the 1940s. "It was always a nice facility to be in," said Bill Howe, who remembered seeing Lawrence Welk perform there about the time it first opened. Howe also remembered many other Big Band era artists who appeared at the Checkerboard, including Eddie Howard, the Blue Baron, Jan Garber, and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. Howe said that many renowned country and western artists also played at the Checkerboard, including Andy Doll, who was originally from Wauzeka. Johnny Cash played there in the late 50s or early 60s and John F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey gave speeches at the Checkerboard before their Democratic Primary in 1960. Howe and others have noted that there were two bars in the Checkerboard, a beer bar where the younger crowd hung out and an adult bar that had beer and spirits. Howe recalled that in its early years, the Checkerboard had an adult bar and a non-alcohol teen bar. Howe also noted that for a time, the area in the south of the building housed the National Guard Medical Unit. After the Checkerboard, the building was the home of Big Bear Hardware for many years, beginning in the 1980s. It later became Yorgi's Bargain Barn before being revamped into Big Bang, Fireworks & More. Howe recalled that over the years, many large farm implement shows were held in and around the building as well as seed company sales events featuring renowned agricultural speakers. Large vacation shows, catered dinners and other community events were also held in the building over the years, he said. As Big Bang, Fireworks & More, the air-conditioned building houses more than 500 different fireworks' items with a variety of pyrotechnic effects. "We're the biggest fireworks store in the area," said Calloway, who noted that Fireworks & More is also a discount variety store that is open year-round. New sand mine project in Clayton Pattison Bros. of Clayton, Iowa is gearing up for the opening of a new silica mine and is in the process of hiring several new employees for the $27 million project. "We've spent about a year and a half researching the project, setting up funding and setting up marketing contracts," said CEO Kyle Pattison, who explained that the company is in the construction phase of the project and will be hiring "19 plus" people by September in order to round up a good crew by the time the mine starts producing sand around February or March of 2007. Pattison said that a total of "39 plus" people will have been hired for the project by sometime in 2008 with the pay scale being "significantly above what the average wage is." The Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) has awarded the company a $1 million loan and credit guarantee and High Quality Job Creation tax benefits. Even though it will be connected to the current mine, the new project will, in effect, be a new mine, said Pattison, who noted that the new sand mine will over time double the size the Pattison Bros.' mining operations. The IDED package is based upon three years and Pattison said that he hopes to process 6,000 tons of sand per week during the first year of operation and increase the capacity to 10,000-12,000 tons per week by the second year. Pattison said that most of the sand will be going out by rail and will be sold to companies in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to be used in hydraulic natural gas wells. The sand is pure quartz of 20-40 grade and 40-70 grade and is blasted by water into wells to vertically fracture shale in order to free up natural gas. Pattison explained that shale is 5 percent natural gas by volume and that about 500 tons of sand is pumped into a typical well. "This sand is unique, round, coarse and won't crush under pressure," said Pattison. "It is pure quartz. Sand is super-eroded rock." Clayton sand is part of the St. Peter Sandstone formation, a giant sheet of sand varying in thickness and depth and running throughout the Midwest. Its thickness in Iowa has been estimated to vary from 15 feet to 223 feet. The new sand mine will be located south of the current Pattison Bros. rail facility and south terminal. Pattison Bros. currently operates a storage facility using a 60-acre former silica sand mine. Pattison said that he will mine sand from the south side of the present mine, creating new shafts to the south. The sand is mixed with water during the cleaning and grading stage. A tire burning process will be used to generate heat to dry the sand. In addition to sand for natural gas wells, other grades of sand could be used in industries such as glass, fiberglass, foundry, sand blasting, roofing and cement. "This is one of the oldest places that have been mining sand," said Pattison. "It was protruding out of the bluffs and easy to get to." Pattison noted that since 1878, there have been three separate silica sand mine operations in the Clayton area. The first, an open pit quarry started by William Buhlman in 1878, changed hands several times before closing in the 1930s. The second, under the management of Richard Kolch, made brick and tile from the silica sand at Clayton from 1919 to 1929. The present mine operation was started by John Langworthy in 1916, and was purchased by the Martin-Marietta Corporation in 1959. In 1983, Pattison Bros. purchased the mine and started to store fertilizer and other bulk commodities in the vast underground acreage of the existing mine. The mine has 14 miles of tunnels and currently provides, in total capacity, 60 acres of underground storage area. The mine runs horizontally into the river bluffs for 2,300 feet and also runs parallel to the river for 3,200 feet. It is approximately 250 feet from the surface in some areas. During the early 1960s, mine officials faced a situation unrelated to mining. At that time, people throughout the United States were intensely concerned about the possibility of a nuclear attack. The federal government responded by designating certain areas as civil defense shelters. The Clayton Mine was selected as a shelter site and 10 railroad cars and 10 semitrailers of food stuffs were placed in the mine, along with medical supplies, in the event of an attack. The mine has a capacity for 44,000 persons whereas the entire population of Clayton County was about 18,000. The story is commonly told that since there was only one road to the mine, people were to drive to the mine, park their car, and enter the mine. The next person would push the first car into the river and park in its place. The civil defense director for Clayton County admitted that he did not know how that many people would ever get to the mine.
Police nab man suspected in string of burglaries
A 29-year-old Prairie du Chien man has been arrested in connection to several burglaries in the Prairie du Chien area. The arrest of Corey Joseph Gokey culminated an investigation that was conducted over the past several months. On Friday, June 16, Gokey was seen driving over the Highway 18 Bridge at approximately 6 p.m. when he stopped his vehicle and threw a large blue duffle bag into the Mississippi River. A short time later, a witness told police where the bag went into the river. The Prairie du Chien Police Department was then able to get a Global Positioning System (GPS) location on where the bag entered the river. The Crawford County Dive team, with the help of a sonar device, recovered the bag from the east channel in about 16 feet of water at 8:44 a.m. on Saturday, June 17. The bag had been weighted down with several pieces of lead, allegedly taken from Halpin Tire of Prairie du Chien. The bag contained a large coin collection, numerous pieces of jewelry, watches and jack knives. A search warrant had been conducted on Gokey's residence about a week prior in connection to several burglaries and Prairie du Chien Police Department Detective Larry Cuff said that he believed that Gokey was trying to get rid of some evidence by throwing the duffle bag into the river. "Our dive team guys did one heck of a job," said Cuff. "Without assistance from the Crawford County Dive Team, we couldn't have solved this crime like we did. As far as I'm concerned, they were risking their lives, especially on a busy weekend like Rendezvous weekend." "It was a great experience for our dive team," said Prairie du Chien Police Officer Chad Abram, a dive team member. "They did an excellent job in keeping the chain of evidence and we had a great witness." Abram said that the second diver to go down recovered the duffle bag. Gokey was arrested on Friday, June 16. On June 21, he was charged in Crawford County Circuit Court with one count of burglary to a building or dwelling. He faces up to a $25,000 fine and 12.5 years in prison if convicted. Even though Gokey has been charged with only one count at this time, Detective Cuff said that Gokey is the prime suspect in at least five burglaries and possibly more from homes and vehicles over the past several months in Prairie du Chien. Following a search of Gokey's apartment, numerous items were seized, most of which had previously been reported stolen by area residents. Items in the police department evidence room June 21 included a television, a saxophone that was valued at $2,000 two years ago, numerous tools and socket sets, numerous watches, necklaces, rings and other items of jewelry, numerous foreign and United States coins from a large coin collection, jack knives, an air compressor, a battery charger, a snow blower, two tents, several clocks, a lamp and many other items. Police did not know the total value of the stolen items but Abram and Cuff estimated the value at between $5,000 and $10,000. Cuff said that several people have been interviewed as part of the investigation of the burglaries. Concerning the one count that Gokey has been charged with, the criminal complaint alleges that on or about Wednesday, June 7, Gokey entered an apartment in the 200 block of South Michigan Street and stole numerous items including some personal documents, jewelry, a small wooden box containing foreign coins, an 18-karat gold ring and other items. The resident of the apartment went to Ritchie's Jewelry Store and described the gold ring to Don Ritchie in case someone attempted to come in and sell the ring. At approximately 4 p.m., June 7, Don Ritchie called the police department and said that Gokey had entered his store and attempted to get Ritchie to purchase a ring matching the description of the stolen ring. No sale transpired and Gokey left the store with the ring. On June 18, while being interviewed by police, Gokey admitted that he went into the apartment and stole several items, the complaint said. According to the complaint, Gokey told police that he put the items into a backpack, which he subsequently threw into the Mississippi River. Prairie du Chien may get $500,000 for downtown revitalization United States Representative Ron Kind has announced the inclusion of $500,000 for Prairie du Chien's Downtown Redevelopment Master Plan in the fiscal year 2007 in the Transportation-Treasury-Housing and Urban Development spending bill, which passed the House on Wednesday, June 14. The funds are specifically intended for streetscape improvements as they relate to the Master Plan. The bill now goes to the Senate, for expected passage in the next few months. "With its idyllic riverfront backdrop, rich historical heritage, and various recreational amenities, Prairie du Chien is a gem along the Mississippi with grand potential as a regional outdoor recreation and tourist destination," said Kind. "I am pleased that I am able to assist in acquiring funding for this important project to revitalize the downtown and help the city create new economic opportunities." "This is the first step in the process, but we're very encouraged that this will hopefully get us some level of funding," said Craig Moser, the program director of Prairie du Chien Revitalization Incorporated. Moser said that he and others connected to the downtown revitalization effort are working with senators Russ Feingold and Herb Kohl as the U.S. Senate is now preparing their version of the Transportation-Treasury-Housing and Urban Development bill. Moser said that when the legislative process is complete the city may not get the full $500,000 that was passed by the House of Representatives but the city could nonetheless get a substantial amount for downtown revitalization. "This will really act as seed money for our private fund-raising drive," said Moser. "This shows that we're working hard towards the downtown revitalization effort to make it a reality." The city of Prairie du Chien's Downtown Redevelopment Master Plan is intended to help revitalize the city's downtown area to become a regional outdoor recreation and tourist destination while preserving its identity as a community service center. Areas identified for streetscape improvements include sidewalks and pavement features, crossings, benches, bike racks, lighting, planting, signage, "gateway" entrance features, and trash receptacles as well as modifications to important infrastructure needs such as sewer, water, and the burying of overhead power lines. Food Quest Supermarket coming to Blackhawk Junction this fall Many residents of the central and northside neighborhoods of Prairie du Chien missed having a convenient, nearby grocery store after Food Pride closed at Commerce Court over two years ago. Food Quest Supermarket is set to fill that gap when they open a 15,000 square foot store at Blackhawk Junction early in September. The store will be much larger that the Eastman Food Quest store, and slightly bigger than the Aldi's store. Michelle Karnopp, owner of Food Quest in Eastman, was approached by Mary Laustad, leasing agent at Blackhawk Junction, in the winter of 2005. According to Karnopp, the original idea was to open a very small grocery mainly stocked with convenience items. That idea just kept growing after to separate market studies supported the creation of a much larger store. A survey market analysis provided free of charge by the Wisconsin Main Street organization was done last fall. The analysis follows a formula which analyzes demographic data. The analysis suggested the size for a potential store and a product mix. "After the survey, things looked pretty good, then we went on to do a market study," Karnopp explained. The market study, completed at the end of April, also supported a larger store, and the need for some specialty items. Karnopp said that the market study was critical to her decision to move forward with the expense and risk of building a large store. "I've got a lot to back me up [now]...had to make sure it was a sure thing," Karnopp said. The store will have all of the regular supermarket departments such as deli, meat, bakery and produce. Additionally, the store will have a bulk foods section, some organics and some local produce in season. Good customer service will be a primary focus of the new store as well. Innovative new services will be offered at Food Quest, including a delivery service one day per week with the placement of a telephone order. Eventually, customers will be able to place their grocery order online when a new Food Quest Web site is up and running, and then have it delivered. But all of that is a little ways off. First, the store space must be built. It will occupy the location formerly leased by the Pickett Fence, and bite into the Slumberland space a few feet as well. "It will look very nice when it's done," Karnopp said. She also noted that the parking in front of the store will be reorganized to allow movement of vehicles and pedestrians. Karnopp was not yet sure how many employees the store would hire, but some new jobs are being created by the opening of the store. Bridget Marovits, Karnopp's daughter will manage the new store. |
