Downtown building is a blank canvas for new owner

A storefront in downtown Hartley is under transformation, but its next phase of life remains somewhat of a mystery.

Deidre Welch purchased the former Classic Closet II location from Jodi Scroggin in September. She's since kept busy with painting, renovating the bathroom and rearranging the interior, but she's not sure what the space will eventually become.

"I've thought about using it for retail, rental space, or a place where instructional classes could be held," she said. "I just didn't want to see another empty space downtown. This is a nice, workable space."

Welch, who owns and operates Grounded with her husband, Kelly, has plenty of experience renovating building interiors. Her coffee shop used to be a farm implement dealership, and the couple recently renovated the north portion of the building into living space.

Even so, her new property won't require that much of an overhaul.

"The building itself is in great shape and I'm really only changing aesthetic things," she said.

The building, which has a 16'x80' footprint, previously housed a jewelry shop and a hair salon prior to Classic Closet II. It also temporarily housed the pharmacy before its move to Fiesta Foods. This summer, Northwest Iowa Vision Therapy rented the building while its primary location underwent renovations.

Traces of the building's other past lives have also been discovered. Welch has found a canvass sign in the basement that reads "Scharr Shoes" and a 30"x36" glass sign that reads "Florsheim Shoes." She restored the latter and plans to display it once the building is ready.

Additionally, Welch intends to install a garage door in the back of the building. She said the future is somewhat of an open book and was eager to see where the road leads. She expected to be done with interior renovations sometime this winter.

"This is a small, doable building, and it's something that can move on to someone else," she said. "It's a cool space."