As you travel down on County Road 4 from Breezy Point you
might think something is missing. You
would be correct in that view as the old Edgewater Inn, or also known as
Knoxies, is no longer standing. This
landmark stood for about 50 years and in its day was a very fine
restaurant. It saw its decline and
eventually closed for business. Many
ideas surfaced about its subsequent use but none materialized.
The building served some good purposes in the end. It was stripped of anything that could be
reused by Habitat for Humanity volunteers.
They took the air handling equipment out, some of the woodwork,
electrical wire and boxes, and miscellaneous items. Some of the more interesting items removed
and sold included the wood walk-in cooler
door and the phone booth. They were very
pleased to have the opportunity to reuse material that would have gone to
waste.
The building also provided a training ground for firemen in
the area. Training exercises were held
the day of the burn and the building was set on fire and put out a few times
before the final burn. Fireman got to
practice moving around in a smoky atmosphere in full gear without the immediate
threats that would occur in other situations.
Once the building was consumed materials were sorted and a
good deal of steel was assembled for recycling.
Other materials were sent to Crow Wing County landfill. The spoils are now gone but work remains. Currently the site contains concrete and
asphalt surfacing. These materials will
eventually be removed and recycled. With
those materials gone the intention would be to reseed the property and have
green space until another use is determined.
A great number of people were involved in all of this and
thanks need to go out to all of them.
There are too many to list by name but the list starts with the owners
who donated the property. The volunteers
from Habitat had their part. The Pequot
Lakes Fire department was the primary unit that accomplished the burn. In addition firemen from Mission, Brainerd,
Ideal, Crosslake and Nisswa Fire Departments participated in training. Ideal Fire Department brought the Aerial
Ladder Truck. Fire, Inc. set up the
training for the burn. The DNR/PCA
approved the permit. The Breezy Point
public works personnel assisted with the burn and removed the spoils. Finally the Breezy Point City Council accepted
the property and approved the razing of the building.
One chapter closes while another one begins.
