(rshsdepot) Ashland, WI

["Bernie Wagenblast" <brwagenblast_@_home.com>]

Depot restoration on track
Steve Tomasko
The Daily Press

Project coordinator Ogilvie stepping down

By STEVE TOMASKO

Staff Writer

About 60 people turned out Sunday night at The Platter Restaurant for a
Depot Restoration Committee celebration.

Since launching a fund-raising effort seven months ago, organizers have
raised all but $65,000 of their $600,000 goal to restore Ashland's historic
Depot building.

At the celebration, people heard an update on the progress of the
restoration. Also, project coordinator Jim Ogilvie announced he would step
down from his position at the end of the year. Leslie Hamp, who had been
heading up the public relations end of the project, will take over Ogilvie's
position.

The restoration work is progressing nicely, Ogilvie said. That's due to the
generosity of all the people who donated money and services to the project,
he said.

"What a beautiful, beautiful response we got from people in the Chequamegon
Bay area and around the state," he said.

A large piece of that came from the Mary K. Rice Foundation of Bayfield,
which donated $150,000.

Other funding for the project includes a $1.1 million Wisconsin Department
of Transportation grant and a $499,000 National Park Service "Save America's
Treasures" grant.

Former building owners Mark and Val Gutteter donated the building and
property to the non-profit Ashland Area Development Corporation, which is
administering the effort to restore the structure.

The goal of the restoration committee is to restore the building as a
public/private partnership.

AADC executive director Frank Kempf said, "we're hoping to make it as much
of a public center for Ashland as possible and still have a cash flow."

The goal is to have an economically self-sustaining building with paying
tenants to provide income for utilities and upkeep.

The first phase of the restoration project is underway. Wayne Nasi
Construction, Inc. is cleaning and stabilizing the building and adding a
roof. Workers are in the process of pouring concrete footings for support
beams. A roof should be on the building by the end of February.

Although from the outside it may not look like a lot of work has gone on,
Dale Kupczyk of AADC, said there's been a lot of work in the basement
cleaning out water and pouring concrete.

In January, the group will kick off Phase II. That's where they start
deciding what businesses or groups will occupy the building so architects
can start designing the interior.

Ogilvie said they will have to know who will be in the building by July 1.

There's a good chance the Ashland Historical Society will be one tenant,
Ogilvie said. They hope to have a restaurant in the building as well.

Local rail road buff Don Johanning may build a model rail road display,
which could compliment the historical society's presence, Ogilvie said.

At the celebration, many praised Ogilvie for his leadership in helping to
raise $500,000 in 90 days.

"We needed a really good community leader to head this up, and Jim (Ogilvie)
was it," Kempf said. "Jim made that big project half as big as it could have
been."

Ashland Mayor Lowell Miller said he had reservations early on whether the
building could ever be restored.

"But the first day I really began to believe it could be is when this man
(Ogilvie) said he'd take on the fund-raising," Miller said.

Besides money that local people donated, their support in other ways also
helped the project, Kempf said. One big reason Governor Scott McCallum left
the DOT grant in the state budget was because of many support letters people
sent to him.

"I know for a fact that the reason the $1 million was left in the budget was
because of the local support," Kempf said.

Incoming project coordinator Leslie Hamp said she remembered watching the
Depot burn nearly two years ago.

"I vowed that day to do whatever I could to see that building re-built," she
said.

Focus groups

The Depot Restoration Committee will hold two focus groups in the coming
months to gather input on the future direction of the project. Anyone in the
community is welcome to attend those meetings, which will be held at WITC
-From 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Feb. 5 and March 4.

Depot products available

Three area retailers are selling Depot products with a portion of the
proceeds going to the Depot Restoration Project.

Long-sleeve mock turtlenecks, ceramic mugs filled with coffee beans or
cocoa, ornaments and gift certificates designating a donation in another
person's name are available at:

* Superior House Gift Shop, 601 Lake Shore Dr. and

* New England Store, 518 Main St.

Framed Depot prints are available at:

* Superior Framing and Gallery, 419 Main St.

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