Sunday, July 19, 2015

Yes, you can move a brick house?

New location. Historic brick house at rest with no apparent damage, tightly corseted like some Victorian debutante.
Continuing our popular summer series of neighborhood "Houses on the Run," we present this Chaska entry, a 130-year-old brick home that was moved about 10 blocks last week to make room for a new Curling Arena. The historic home near the main intersection was headquarters to a local landscaping company for the past 30 years, before that -- you'll have to check with Chaska Herald editor Mark Olson. The night move created quite a stir, putting a reporter on the curb way past midnight to witness this epic event.
Thein Movers from Clara City did the honors, took four hours to move it over to Walnut Street, to take residence amongst similar architecture.
It's now a block away from the town square and two blocks from the newspaper office, which is made from the same vintage Chaska brick dug from the local clay pits and about the same age.
The city hopes to become a mecca for curlers with the construction of a mega ice sheet at its main intersection. Curling, an Olympic event, is emerging as a favorite for leisure timers. Consult with Wayne Kasich of International Falls on that. Not sure if he handles the broom or what.
The Raidele/Ernst house, above, is no longer an impediment to progress.