Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
ABOVE, PROJECT director Rick Allen of Ruotsala Construction in Ironwood provides guidance from the ground while Rick Carlson (unseen) uses an excavator at left to peel away pieces from the back of the old Gambles Building in Bessemer on July 10. At right, taking advantage of an elevated perspective from an LG lift, Kevin Jackson backs up Allen in studying the process in order to protect the adjacent business building that sat directly next to the demolition site.
By PAMELA JANSSON
BESSEMER - The end of an era, of sorts, occurred on July 10 when the old Gamble Hardware building and Rexall Pharmacy building were demolished in a single day on Bessemer's main street.
The action was a long time coming and was made possible, finally, by recently allotted funds from Michigan's State Land Bank Authority.
"It's kind of tough to watch it go down," said Jerry Strelcheck, who ran a hardware store there for many years, starting at the age of 18 when his father - the previous proprietor - passed away unexpectedly.
Strelcheck, who was sitt...
