Town turns out for store owner

Nearly 100 people appeared Tuesday at a public hearing in Wrenshall related to proposed RV park regulations. About 15 percent of attendees spoke at the hearing, doing so resoundingly and to repeated applause. Their message to the city's planning commission, which is also its town council: leave business owner Jeff Bloom alone.

"For you to pick this man out and single him out and try to create ordinances to cause him to spend more money that could possibly cause him to go out of business is completely uncalled for," said Jim Biaglow, of Clarksville, Tennessee, a refinery worker who is staying at Bloom's RV park.

Last year, the council imposed a moratorium on new campgrounds, putting Bloom's proposed expansion of his RV park in jeopardy. Bloom is the owner of the Wrenshall General Store, Lots4Bid, storage units and the aforementioned RV park, all located on 23 acres at the south edge of town.

There wasn't a dissenting opinion in the crowd, members of which testified to valuing Bloom and his spouse, Liz, for the way they restored a vacant storefront, brought diesel and propane to town and, generally, provide for the town in a variety of ways.

"Be good to Jeff," Wrenshall resident Mark Anderson said. "Jeff has been good to us."

Numerous residents wondered aloud why alleged complaints about noise and Bloom's property being an eyesore were not logged and written anywhere.

"You need to walk straight, act right and tell the truth," said Caroline Johnson, who, with her husband, Byron, have owned the Brickyard Restaurant in town for 33 years. "If there are actual complaints of people saying his business is an eyesore, he needs to be given those complaints so he can see who's complaining about it."

Mayor Gary Butala opened the meeting by explaining the city's position.

"Current city code does not have any sections on recreational camping or RV parks and this ordinance will establish rules for any new camping areas," Butala said.

The proposed ordinance would require 2-acre parcels for campgrounds, a problem for Bloom's proposed expansion because he broke up his property in order to circumvent state campground regulations.

"We are providing numerous different services for these people and these people obviously enjoy it, they want it and I don't know why we're trying to limit it," Bloom said on Tuesday.

Also presented at the hearing was a separate ordinance change to limit interim-use permits to one year. The mayor explained the city and Bloom's attorneys are working behind the scenes on his expiring interim use permit allowing him to store auction items outdoors on his lot. Bloom has said he won't seek to renew the permit, reasoning that he's displaying items for sale and not storing them.

Testimony was limited to 3 minutes per person and the one-hour hearing was conducted hospitably, with participants speaking reasonably and four councilors mostly listening.

"We'll address (things) at a future meeting," Butala said, "after we get everything out in the open."

What follows are testimonies from attendees:

-Dean Bader, of Wrenshall, asked: "As a private resident, if you own an RV ... this ordinance could possibly affect you keeping it on your property, fact or fiction?"

"That is not true," the mayor said.

- LeeAnne Gibson, of Holyoke, described herself as the owner of two small businesses. "When you make it so hard for a business to stay in business," she said, "now you're making it hard for the community in other areas."

- Jamie Hopp, of Wrenshall, said: "I don't want to be here ... in a community where small business is getting attacked. You need to allow small businesses that are willing to put their neck out on the line and put their money where we have needs."

-Bloom himself complained about investing $25,000 in water, sewer and electrical infrastructure for an RV park expansion that now may not happen. "If I keep losing enough money, it will affect the store," he said. "The store won't be there."

- John "Sandy" Dugan, of Silver Brook Township, said Wrenshall is not a sleepy village, but rather a vibrant center of a broader rural community. "For our money, we are glad to have ambitious entrepreneurs who are willing to risk their capital to build a community that serves the wider community," he said.

- Johnson, of the Brickyard Restaurant, cited examples of what she described as "harassment" by past city leaders. "We need to be pro-business in this town and not anti-business," she said.

- Russell Stark was another small-business owner in town. "To hear the problems (Bloom) has that just kind of piles on top of the stress for the other businesses around," he said. "The struggle is real for us ... I'd really like to see us making it easier instead of harder for people."

- Ryan Gunderson was yet another small-business owner in Wrenshall. "As a small business, I would like to grow and if I can't see my peer and my elder grow, I'm not doing it in your community," he said. "I will move on."

- Bill Del Zotto owns a concrete fabrication business in the town and said he's sold equipment through Bloom's auction company. "He complements our business in a very important way," Del Zotto said. "I see what he does there; everything is dialed in and it's beautiful. I can't believe there's an ordinance to try to affect Jeff in a negative way. That makes no logical sense to me."

- Dale Wolf, of Wrenshall, said: "I don't want the store to close because it's been terrible when we don't have a store. I don't want to go to Gary-New Duluth to get gas, or to Carlton or Cloquet."

-Damon Swenson, of Wrenshall, said he wanted councilors to ponder the effect of Bloom's 54 storage rental units. "How much stuff would be laying around Carlton County and Wrenshall?" he said. "That's a service Jeff provides to help clean the community."

-Deb Salo lives on property bordering the RV park. She said it was open for more than a year before she knew it was in operation. "I've never had a lick of a problem with it," she said. "It brings money to the community."

Biaglow, of Tennessee, said bringing the Superior refinery back online will result in periodic shutdowns and turnarounds that will bring a continued flow of workers into the RV park and revenue to town. Biaglow described Bloom as running a tight ship, with no noise or litter accumulation, and easy access for vehicles with no potholes.

"He's already got an organization in place over there I don't see any problem with - and I'm your transient, RV park expert," said Biaglow, who has done refinery-type work in 42 states.

After the hearing adjourned, Bloom told the crowd drinks were on him at the nearby Bricks Wrenshall Pub.