Door County Granary heads into final phase of becoming a community center and museum

STURGEON BAY - The work that's gone on for almost two and a half years on the Door County Granary mostly has been invisible to passersby on Sturgeon Bay's West Side waterfront.

But now, the work becomes much more visible as the project moves into its second phase.

Phase II of transforming the former Teweles & Brandeis Grain Elevator into a three-season public gathering venue and interpretive museum begins Monday. When done, that will complete the work needed to fulfill the agreement the Sturgeon Bay Historical Society Foundation signed with city to develop the 123-year-old building, foundation president Laurel Hauser said.

"Technically, when Phase II is done, we'll be able to open for business," Hauser said.

This phase will restore the interior of the historic structure, complete the exterior, build the catering kitchen and public restroom addition, install landscaping and signage and prepare the ground floor for occupancy. Hauser said people will be able to see a lot of work taking place during this stretch, with siding, windows and doors being installed and work on the landscape and walkways.

Also part of Phase II is research, gathering artifacts and putting together displays for the interpretive museum, which will cover the history of the grain elevator as well as role agriculture, shipping and the railroad industry played in the city's development.

Work will begin with repairs made to the grain tower's 19 wooden grain bins and other features, which will run into March. Construction of a railway car-inspired addition that will include the catering kitchen and public restrooms and the installation of siding, windows and doors is scheduled for April and May.

While Phase II is expected to wrap up by August, the foundation is planning just a soft opening for the granary in the fall. Hauser said the building won't be ready to host events until the spring of 2025.

"We're still going to be in a stage where we're trying to figure out (the logistics of hosting an event), where all the tables go, what needs to be done," Hauser said.

The granary on the banks of the Sturgeon Bay channel was built in 1901. It is considered by many a landmark of the waterfront and the city's agricultural history.

But it sat unused for many years, and the city bought the property in 2012. After being told it was dangerous and irreparable in late 2017, the city decided to dismantle the granary in January 2018 with hopes of redeveloping the property.

But a group of citizens concerned with preservation of historic buildings and structures formed the Sturgeon Bay Historical Society Foundation and fought to preserve the granary, getting it named to the State Register of Historic Places in 2017 and the National Register of Historic Places a few months later.

A private party bought it from the city and donated it to the foundation, and it was moved across the Maple-Oregon Bridge, sitting across the water from its original location for more than a year while the foundation, the city and other parties debated its future.

The foundation and the city eventually reached an agreement that saw the granary move back across the bridge to its original location, where the structure is being converted into the new community center and events venue.

The ground floor, known as the workhouse, will serve as a grand entrance to the museum while hosting events such as holiday markets, weddings, family and class reunions, lectures and other classes, pop-up art installations and theatrical shows. A railway car-inspired addition to the side, where Ahnapee & Western Railway cars pulled up to load and unload at the grain tower, will include the catering kitchen and public restrooms. Tents and food trucks are expected to be able to set up in the green space next to the building.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the project was held Nov. 19, 2021. Since then, work by the contractors has included sinking new pilings into the lake bed, pouring a new foundation and sending 30 support columns to Tennessee to be refurbished. The columns were reset inside to support the top two layers of the structure. There's also a new roof and everything was extensively cleaned from top to bottom.

Plus, Hauser noted, there's all the design work and paper work that needed to be done before physical work could take place.

"The thing people don't see is the thousands of hours on design and permitting," Hauser said, "all the work that had to be done negotiating this project with the city, the legal work."

Hauser said contractors didn't run into any of the major unexpected issues that can arise when remodeling or renovating a building that old. She said the main surprise contractors weren't expecting was an issue with methane, because a landfill was nearby many years ago.

"In terms of any major surprises in the building we didn't know about, no, they weren't there," she said. "We didn't discover anything that caused us to say, oh my gosh."

Hauser said the foundation has funding in place to finish Phase II and make the granary ready to open the museum and host events. However, the foundation continues to raise funds to enable visitors to access the headhouse at the top of the structure, about 60 feet off the ground, and take in views of the bay, bridges, railway spur and surrounding area, which are meant to not only awe visitors but also help them understand how the granary worked and why it was strategically located there.

For more information on the project, visit sturgeonbayhistoricalsociety.org/granary.

Contact Christopher Clough at 920-562-8900 or cclough@doorcountyadvocate.com.

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This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Door County Granary in Sturgeon Bay enters Phase II of museum project