A Brief, but Limited and Abridged, Summary of 3rd and Broadway

July 15

From the Cub Reporter’s source on everything Alexandria:  “Dick Wiles built it as Bronc’s on Broadway. He was an heir to Sunshine Biscuits. The little baker on the box of Cheez Its was his grandfather. He grew up summers at the Minnesouri Angling Club on Lake Miltona. There were two houses there. The turret on the restaurant was part of the Frank Englund home and was the only thing Dick saved from that house. His first idea was a casual rib joint, p-nuts on the floor. Janet Baker, a bonified chef, his wife at the time wanted fine dining. It was a special occasion venue and a county of 30k could not sustain it. When they divorced Dick shut it down. Then the Bistodeaus bought it, added more dining to the north and the gift shop extending out from the building back by the alley, the gazebo and the lawn. Frank sold it to Jill Blashack and Joni Nielson from a Tastefully Simple. They incorporated some TS products into the menu. They ran it for about three years and shut it down. They put it up for sale. Mark Weston wanted it but he and Joni were $300k apart and he knew he couldn’t cash flow it so he walked. Chris Anderson (Anderson’s Outpost out on State Park Rd Carlos) opened it for one summer. Then it sat empty until Jason Mueller opened one of his Bello Cucina’s there. He is a genius. He got divorced, had a heart attack and closed it. I think he is involved in some way with the new development. I hope so. The building probably sat empty as long or longer than it was open. There ya go. Roy always says, “If you ask Patty the time she’ll tell you how to build a watch”! 😂 The big house on the left was the Frank W. and Mildred Danielson home. Mildred was my mom’s sister. The house on the right was the Englund home with the turret.  Aunt Mildred’s home was torn down years before Dick bought the turret house. He built Bronc’s from the ground up in about 1986.  And feel free to share our family picture. Gloria Danielson Watson, my cousin from Class of ’63 grew up in the big house.  Dick had a bar shipped from Ireland. His daughter asked me about it yesterday. I think this is part of the back bar. At least it was rescued. The girls gave me all the old Alexandria framed and matted photos that had hung in the Broncs. Out of everything at Wileswood, when they asked me what I wanted, they were amazed I said those pictures. I should have asked for the solid sterling box that had belonged to Adolf Eichmann. Bad juju! Side note. Dick Schultz from Best Buy bought Wileswood after Dick died.”  See, I told you.

[Upon the news of current events . . . ]

[We’re going to the red dot in the middle, then crossing the street to the south . . . ]

[When I Googled “Bronc’s, Alexandria,” this is what I got . . . ]

[Old Broadway . . . ]

[Bello Cucina . . . ]

[Rune, the new structure to built on the entire block with a scheduled completion for the end of 2021 . . . ]

[Your crack snoop reporter on the beat . . . ]

[Some shots of Bello Cucina.  Back in the days of Old Broadway, we ate all our special occasion meals there.  Mom’s birthdays, when she always ordered prime rib, with a couple martinis, in the corner, in the library . . . ]

[Then on July 15th, the entire block began to disappear . . . ]

[Opening a view to the armory on the other side of Broadway . . . ]

[The last vestiges of Bello’s still standing on the left . . . ]

[The Edward Jones building on the corner will remain.  Back in the day, that was the location of Vernon Studio, where all the high school classes (including ’65) had their graduation photos taken . . . ]

[Now looking back toward 3rd Avenue . . . ]

[And view from the corner of 3rd Avenue, looking south into downtown . . . ]

[Lotsa changes going on in the old home town . . . ]

The duty we owe to history is to rewrite it.  ~  Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), Irish writer

Up Next:  More out West?