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Two weeks ago, a 140-plus-year-old building in the Ozarks’ historic downtown square collapsed without warning. Demolition of the building was completed on Wednesday, leaving three of his businesses on the same block blocked.
The demolished building at 101 W. Church St. included the Adventure Coffee Co., office space, and residential units. The reason for his December 29 collapse of the building remains unknown.
Other businesses sharing the block are Heart of Grace Boutique, Iguana Roja Restaurant and Ozark License Bureau. All businesses and residences in the block were evacuated the morning of the day the building collapsed. No injuries have been reported.
The Iguana Roja and Licensing Office have reopened, but the Heart of Grace boutique is moving to a new temporary location in the square.
On New Year’s Eve, two days after the building collapsed, Heart of Grace Boutique co-owners Tisha Wade and Spencer Wade spent an hour retrieving their belongings from the store with the help of the Ozark Fire Precinct. The next week, Mr. and Mrs. Wade took about two more hours to retrieve the rest of the items needed for the temporary location before the building was deemed off-limits.
Behind the boutique, Spencer ran Cup of Grace Coffee, a 300-square-foot coffee shop. Mr. and Mrs. Wade did not move the coffee shop items to a new temporary location.
The owner of a magical parlor building on the west side of the square approached Wade and offered him temporary space. The boutique is set to open early next week in his space located at 116 N. Third St. Wades said he expects the temporary space to last several months, or until structural engineers deem it safe to return. The location is Church Street.
The boutique is open Monday through Friday from 10am to 5pm and Saturday from 10am to 4pm. Updates will be posted on the Heart of Grace Boutique Facebook page at facebook.com/heartofgracellc.
“It’s been tough, but I know the real communities and business owners in the Ozarks have been very helpful…and so has the Fire Department and the (Ozark) Historic River District,” Spencer said. “We are very grateful.”
Other businesses are open despite road and parking blockages
Two doors down from 101 W. Church Street is the Ozark Licensing Bureau operated by the Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks. BCFO CEO Joe Daues said he knew at least one manager and one of his customers were in the licensing office when a nearby building collapsed.
“[The manager]described the building collapse as the sound of a car driving through the front of the building,” Douss said.
The Licensing Office resumed operations the following week, January 2nd. Barricades remain along Church Street, prohibiting people from parking in front of the store, but the sidewalk to the entrance is accessible.
Daues said the experience was “challenging”, but after an initial inspection by structural engineers, the station was able to resume operations “much sooner” than expected.
On the other side of the block of buildings now demolished is the Iguana Roja. The restaurant’s owner, Brian Taylor, said he has seen a decline in customers due to road closures and limited parking in front of the store.
For most of the two weeks following the incident, North Second and North First Streets between Church Street and West Brick Street were closed to make room for demolition and cleaning. As of Wednesday, portions of North First Street remain closed.
Taylor also said he has heard concerns from community members about the safety of the building that houses the restaurant. At this time, Iguana Loja and the Ozark License Bureau are open and safe to operate and our hours of operation are unaffected.
“The City of Ozarks is working with building owners and their contractors to move projects forward as quickly as possible,” the City of Ozarks posted online Jan. 6. .
The newsreader contacted Adventure Coffee Co. but was unable to secure an interview.
According to Ozark Missouri’s Facebook page, the building at 101 W. Church St. was constructed in the 1880s. The Heart of Grace boutique opened two years ago, and the iguana celebrated her 10th anniversary in December.
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