Sumner businesses are reopening after massive loss in downtown fire. Others are ‘in limbo’
Kurstyn Schober considers her staff and customers as her extended family.
Even after a fire destroyed her business in late October, they still host Trivia Tuesdays at Purdy’s Public House & Arcade in Sumner.
Schober owned Stuck Junction Saloon on Main Street. It was one of the businesses wrecked by a three-alarm fire Oct. 28. A 23-year-old woman was charged in early November with first-degree arson.
“We loved being a part of the community,” Schober said. “We had a great run.”
The building at 1003-1005 Main Street that used to house Stuck Junction, Whispering Hills Market and The Attic is gone. Schober said there isn’t another space in town that has a kitchen with a commercial exhaust hood.
“We’re in limbo right now,” she said.
The total cost of all the damages is about half a million dollars, she said.
Schober said her family worked hard to keep Stuck Junction alive, especially when COVID-19 restrictions were in effect. The restaurant had planned to reinstate steak night and add new burgers to the menu a couple days before the fire.
“It’s been a pretty sad loss for us,” she said.
Raejean Kreel’s furniture and home decor store, Whispering Hills Market, was next to Stuck Junction. They were able to salvage a mural with the market’s name and flowers painted on it.
Kreel said after the fire, she hosted pop-up booths at The Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse and Untamed Coffee & Muddy Soda. The market eventually found a new home at 909 Alder Ave., and the doors opened in April.
Whispering Hills received an overwhelming amount of support from patrons when they reopened, she said. One customer visited the market on its first day and offered to pray with staff while another also offered to pray before closing time.
“It’s kind of been a roller coaster for us,” Kreel said. “Our followers have been incredible.”
Valley Social Wine Bar and Tasting Room, which was next to Whispering Hills’ former location, had opened to the public about three and a half weeks before the fire. A limited entry sign is still posted at the bar, owners Shawn Harris and Melinda Jobst said.
It’s not open for business. There’s work that needs to be done on the structure of the building that houses the bar, Harris said. Construction work might be done in September, but the owners said they aren’t certain about that.
Harris said Valley Social will have a stand at Rhubarb Days from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. June 24-25 downtown.
“We’re still hopeful,” Harris said.
Heritage Quest Library is still standing but hasn’t reopened. It was next to Stuck Junction. Director Jo-Anne Huber said the books and other items inside were damaged by smoke. The nonprofit genealogy library held over 16,000 books, she said.
“There was nothing that the smoke didn’t touch,” Huber said.
Crews were able to clean the shelves and books, she said. However, the library lost all of its electronics, including computers, a copier machine and video equipment.
Huber said they’re looking for a new home but they’ve been struggling to find one. They’re looking for a space that’s about 2,000 square feet or more. This process has been “very difficult and very stressful,” she said.
The library is offering Zoom classes to its patrons. Those interested in the classes can find more information at www.hqrl.com.
Main Street Tattoo, not too far from Heritage Quest, reopened in mid-January. Owner Joe Meyer said smoke damage took over everything in the shop. The cost of all the damages was under $100,000, he said.
The shop at 1011 Main St. had seven workers before the fire. Now it has three, Meyer said. Those who left found new jobs while the shop was undergoing cleanup.
“If I could just say a word to the wise for someone else that would experience something like this — there are grants available for disasters,” he said.
The state Department of Commerce provided over $600,000 to the Sumner businesses affected by the fire, according to a social media post from the city on April 11.
JoJo + CoCo, a boutique at 1101 Main St., was closed for about a month after the fire. Owner JoAnna Asplund said they’ve been “chugging along” and are doing fine. The boutique’s year anniversary is sometime in June.
“The community of Sumner has been very supportive,” Asplund said. “I feel a bright future ahead.”
The Buttered Biscuit at 1014 North St. #1000 reopened May 13, The News Tribune reported. It was closed for over six months. Patrons can expect to find new decor and tweaks to the menu.
