The long and storied history of the Bernard’s Restaurant and Catering building is reaching its end.
The Hutchinson City Council voted to move forward with demolition at their last meeting. This ended the owner Susie Gress’s effort to partially save the historic building and its contents. She hoped to at least keep a kitchen and her business going.
It is a sad thing to see any small business closed. It is especially sad to see a structure with a long history and deep cultural significance torn down.
This edition contains a partial history of Bernard’s. Featuring the closing business felt important—both to honor the legacy of the business and to shed light on injustices the owners faced through the years.
There are many chapters in Bernard’s story. This final one is heartwrenching but unsurprising to many. Like a good story, the conclusion was foreshadowed along the way.
No one person or group is to blame for the drawn-out process Gress faced. Some unique and unfortunate circumstances contributed. Many of the people involved through the years are no longer employed at City Hall.
But in hindsight, it took far too long to get to this point.
In general, once a property gets to where it is considered for demolition by the city, it is usually pretty far gone. By then, even for the most motivated owner, it can be hard to get everything back up to code.
Often, a lack of money is what leads to a lack of repairs in the first place. Life happens, and not every business succeeds. Many owners have a hard time recognizing when it is time to let go.
Some owners find the money—plus often the blood and sweat—to fix the issues and move forward. In other instances, the building is sold, and a new owner with deeper pockets or a better plan can get it done.
Sometimes, when a building can’t be saved, the current owner, or a new one, demolishes it themselves at their own expense.
Other times, the city foots the bill and ends up losing money at the tax sale.
When there is an opportunity to save a building, particularly one with historical value, we should take it. In some cases, when there are clear signs of progress, it makes sense to extend deadlines. It takes time to get plans, money and contractors.
However, when progress is not made promptly, that is often a sign that there is no good path forward. In those cases, the city rarely does anyone a favor by dragging out the process. False hope can prompt property owners to invest time, effort, and money with a low chance of success.
Some readers who highly value property rights may wonder if it is the city’s business at all to crack down on poorly maintained properties. Our view is that property rights are crucial and that the rights of the adjacent and nearby property owners are at play.
Blight remains a big concern. For too long, local leaders looked the other way as absentee owners have allowed buildings to crumble. This has two big impacts. First, it hurts everyone else’s property values. Second, it hurts our community pride. Both have held back new development for decades—something has to shift.
Perhaps that shift is coming.
A new city manager and other additions to staff at City Hall seem to have Hutchinson on a better track going forward. Starting with deciding to finally demolish the old Atrium hotel after its own drawn-out process, they’ve shown no signs of slowing—addressing blight head-on, while leaving room for owners to fix up buildings when they can.
The most recent round of properties added to the demolition list saw some buildings fixed up and removed from the list. Others had their deadlines extended and are making progress. For the rest, blight is being removed.
There is a need to address this issue while remaining flexible and pro-development. Officials need to show wisdom in their application of the codes. They have made progress toward a “yes” attitude, rather than telling building owners “no” whenever they come with creative solutions to code challenges.
Taking blight seriously while addressing it humanely is the key. City Hall may have finally found the balance.
-The Hutchinson Tribune Editorial Board