Owners repair, rehabilitate historic buildings

• Owners improve buildings

Two downtown building owners recently paid for work to the brick facade of their buildings; the Whole Earth Grocery has windows like it used to, and the County Line Agency building has a new concrete wall cap. Debbie Griffin photos

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The building that houses Whole Earth Grocery, 126 S. Main St., now resembles its “old self” more than ever after owner James Freeman restored its original transom windows that had been covered for many years.

The grocery closed its front entrance for a few days while tradesmen installed the new glass plus raised the front-entry ceiling, plus upgraded electric, lighting and the heating/ventilation/air conditioning system.

Freeman said late last week the front entrance would re-open within a few days. Earlier this year, the building owner restored the windows and original façade of the historic red-brick building he owns at 100 S. Main St., which houses Sunrise Tanning.

The County Line Insurance Agency, 107 S. Main St., recently repaired the building’s concrete wall cap. Agency and building owner Mike Danielson said the chunk of concrete sat at the very top of the building and measured 22 feet long, nine inches deep and about 15 inches wide. He said the piece had begun to deteriorate after so many years of expanding and contracting with the cold and withstanding all kinds of weather -- water had also found its way into the concrete block. Workers spent a few days on scaffolding to remove the old cap and put in a new one. Danielson said he’s owned the building since 1981 and can remember when it was a dry-cleaner business and credit union. He said the building has had other work in the past, including the front-facade bricks and big windows facing Main Street.

Tags: river falls, business, wisconsin, history