Replay Chat: Museum move putting Czech Village back in spotlight

Czech Village merchants preparing for an international spotlight have been unable to completely erase evidence of the Floods of 2008.

Media outlets from the United States, Czech Republic and elsewhere will converge on the business district along 16th Avenue SW when the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is moved today from the banks of the Cedar River.

Red geraniums and potted petunias color the district, but visitors also will see boarded windows and other remnants of the flood at the river end of the village, where 8 to 10 feet of water surged through buildings nearly three years ago.

“Part of the story of the neighborhood is the flood,” said museum President Gail Naughton, noting that footage of flood-damaged buildings won't necessarily reflect negatively on Czech Village. “It's a city that's still rebuilding and that's a part of the story, too.”

In fact, the reason the museum is moving from its site at 30 16th Ave. SW is because of the flood.

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Structurally, the building was sound, but other museums would not loan collections to use in that location and the museum could not obtain flood insurance for artifacts at the site along the river.

Not all Czech Village buildings fared as well.

Nan Barta, co-owner of the Saddle & Leather Shop, said the 100-year-old building at 48 16th Ave. SW was sold to the city in January as part of the flood buyout process.

Dingy film left by floodwaters still coat the shop's windows, where signs declare “unsafe” and “no trespassing”.

“There was no way financially to take on that debt and no way to recover it,” Barta said of the cost of renovation.

City flood recovery director, Joe O'Hern, said the building is among about 50 flood-damaged commercial properties that will likely be demolished in coming months.

Across the street, windows are boarded on the former Salvation Army, 45 16th Ave. SW, whose owner is contemplating the building's future.

Next door, the former Hurych Plumbing & Heating, 39 16th Ave. SW, is being used for storage.

Owned by the museum, a sign indicates that the building will be renovated this year and next.

Naughton noted that efforts have been concentrated around the massive move of the museum building. Once that has been completed, attention can turn to other properties the museum owns in Czech Village, she said.

Jeremy Patterson Structural Moving & Shoring, of Washington, Iowa, will relocate the museum 480 feet away, on top of a parking garage.

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The move is historic.

Patterson noted that at 1,740 tons and nearly 17,000-square-feet, this will be the largest museum ever moved for hazard mitigation.

The first day of moving is predicted to draw a crowd of 10,000 or more, a temporary boost, at least, for village businesses.

“I have just about every relative and anyone I've ever run into, coming to help us that day,” said John Rocarek, owner of Sykora Bakery, 73 16th Ave. SW.

The bakery's traffic has improved as spectators interested in the museum move have visited Czech Village, but it hasn't picked up completely since the flood.

“We plan on doing six weeks of business in the two to three day period of the move,” Rocarek said, with plans to bake 900 dozen kolaches, a fruit-filled Czech pastry.

Nearby, George Joens is debating the future of Joens Bros. Interiors, 59 16th Ave. SW, his Czech Village business since 1959.

The double whammy of recession and the flood could mean the end for the floor covering business, he said. Business at Maria's Tea Room, which he also owns, is down, too, he said.

Baron Stark, who owns about 10 Czech Village properties, noted that the village offers more variety since the flood and nearly all buildings have tenants.

Advantage Realty, 99 16th Ave. SW, and Clymer Photography, 98 16th Ave. SW, opened just this spring and Stark has people interested in leasing the former Polehna's Meat Market, 96 16th Ave. SW, which he also owns.

Stark said business at his Red Baron bar, 62 16th Ave. SW, has been so good that he is adding a 4,500-square-foot addition for a larger dance floor and restaurant.

“You see a lot of progress,” he said. “Sometimes good things happen when things change.”