Duluth Historical Society Blog

Preserving our history, recording the present and reaching for the future

Monthly Archives: July 2010

Election party to be held at Rexall

Gwinnett’s maligned Rexall Grill will open next week — at least for one night.

The grill, which was closed last month by the state for failure to pay sales taxes, will be the site of the Election Night party for Duluth congressional candidate Jef Fincher.

“As a long-time member of this neighborhood, Jef Fincher understands and appreciates the importance of familiar places where individuals can come together and reconnect, unwind, and get to know one another,” Fincher’s campaign said in a press release about the 41-year-old community fixture.

Linda Alley, who owns the adjoining Rexall Drugs and the name and location of the grill, said she hopes to reopen the restaurant as soon as possible under her own business license. She purchased much of the food and fixtures (on top of the ones she already owned) during a state auction last week. Fincher said those chairs and tables will be available from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. as he and supporters gather to watch election returns.
Fincher’s wife Kathy said she wanted to make sure state Rep. Brooks Coleman, who has held Saturday morning town hall meetings at the location for years, is “at home.”

Duluth looks to save trees

At the behest of residents, the Duluth City Council on Monday agreed to look at ways to improve West Lawrenceville Street to reduce the number of trees removed.

Council members instructed City Administrator Phil McLemore to set up meetings with residents, the project engineer, an arborist and city staff to consider changes to plans for the improvements.

The improvements to the street were designed to increase pedestrian access to downtown Duluth.

Plans drawn by Wolverton & Associates, a Duluth-based engineering consulting firm, call for widening the 11-foot-wide traffic lanes to 12 feet, expanding the existing 4-foot-wide sidewalk on the north side of the street to 5 feet, constructing a 5-foot-wide sidewalk on the south side, installing curb and gutter and adding storm drains.

West Lawrenceville Street resident David Cossette, who represented 23 of the 27 home and property owners on the street, appealed to the council to save as many of the trees as possible.

“West Lawrenceville Street is a historic gateway to our city that needs to be preserved and maintained,” Cossette said. “Loss of the tree canopy would be detrimental.”

Some 20 residents attended the council meeting in support of saving the trees.

Cossette said that the present plans would result in the loss of 15 to 18 60-year or older hardwoods, eight ornamental cherry trees, yard space, landscaping, and a rock retaining wall. Most of the trees would be displaced by adding the sidewalk on the south side of the street, he said.

“We’re not anti-development or against moving forward,” he said. “We just want the council to proceed in a conservative and logical way, especially in regard to preserving the trees.”