The Olde Wethersfield
MAIN STREET CREAMERY
After the 12/8/2001 Fire:
Klaus and Paul are
REBUILDING THE ICE CREAM DREAM

 

~ ~ Paula: 7/29/2001 ~ The Day After: Snow ~ 12/9: Closed: Dark & Dirty ~ Thru' the Glass: Smokey ~ Hint of Happier Time ~ Hoping: Ice Cream Again? ~ The Promise: YES ! ~ Kris Thompson: Cleans ~ Eye to the Future? ~ Fire-Rated Quality ~ Klaus Larsen: Watchful ~ Promise: Confirmed! ~ Tin Ceiling: Done ~ (L/R)Lou & Sebby Aresco Contractor & Electrician ~ Klaus & Paula working! ~ Toppings! ~ Sample Cups & Signs ~ Home Stretch.... ~ Value-added service ~ Testamonial: Hmmmmmmmmmmm! ~ Suzy-Q the Clown ~ Acknowledgments: Thanks to All ~ I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! ~ Paula & Klaus Larsen Wethersfield.Net

The Olde Wethersfield MAIN STREET CREAMERY After the 12/8/2001 Fire: Klaus and Paul are REBUILDING THE ICE CREAM DREAM   Wethersfield, CT, USA -- We hardly need to remind you of the incredible, edible summer and autumn of 2001 at the Main Street Creamery. But, we will. Starting in mid-April, 2001, Klaus and Paula Larsen opened their door at 217 Main Street in the heart of historic Old Wethersfield, CT. They offered a irresistible assortment of home made ice cream, frozen yogurt and other frozen confections. The public, first in Wethersfield and then in central Connecticut, opened their lips, hearts and their purses to the offerings here. Paula, the energetic spirit that she is, was not content to just sell ice cream. She offered her warmth and charisma to young and old alike. Not content to stay behind the counter, she always had her camera ready to capture the rapture of the little ones licking, slurping and nibbling their way through her treats. Soon it seemed, hundreds of Paula's photos lined first one wall, then another, and then the window of the Main Street Creamery. Each was testament to her and Klaus' success of serving the public what they wanted, high quality, tasty, cool and satisfying frozen deserts. Theirs was not and is not an easy business. Their days were spent first in preparation of the recipes and then long hours serving the eager public. Ten to twelve hour days at least six days a week were and are the norm. Sandwiched in between is the promotion and marketing that all businesses must perform. Contending with a myriad of little crises did not leave them daunted. Being the entrepreneurs they are, they experimented with additional ways to increase the public's awareness in MSC and worked hard to keep you coming back. Local talent was encouraged to entertain their customers in front of and near their storefront. We have previously reported on one of these here at wethersfield.net, Raymond the Great magician. Permission for additional seats for the youngsters and elders on the sidewalk apron was sought from the town too. The long autumn of 2001 stretched on. Their sweat business continued to flourish. You may remember the assorted forecasts for a significantly cold and snowy winter of 2002 (just finishing) that we were supposed to have. Paula and Klaus had mixed feeling about having to close their shop during the anticipated miserable winter ahead, not having any indoor seating. They knew however that ice cream lovers are a dedicated bunch; ice cream is craved year round. Nonetheless, winter would provide them with a period of enforced, relative rest. And then it happened, coincidentally with the first of our three minor snowfalls this season: Dec. 8, 2001:  A design flaw in a coffee maker allowed it to remain "on" even after the coffee in it had evaporated after the machine had not been specifically turned "off." The wiring supplying the coffee maker overheated and eventually ignited. The fire crept up the wall to the ceiling, fortunately filling the then unstaffed and unattended creamery with acrid smoke. The odd smell seeped into the apartment level above the creamery and fortunately to the attention of building superintendent Mr. Church. The suite had no smoke detectors and no sprinkler system. The WVFD responded quickly, but the damage from fire, smoke and water had taken its toll. Inventory was rendered useless; equipmente was damaged; even Paula's myriad photos were damaged. Paula and Klaus were now out of business. What would they do, customers and neighbors in Old Wethersfield asked. Early the following week this notice was posted on the front door of the Creamery: It is with great sadness to confirm that there was a fire here on Saturday evening December 8th. We will do everything to make a quick recovery and reopen Main Street Creamery! (That's a promise.) Thank you all for your calls, prayers and incredible warm-felt concerns. That has touched our hearts so. We will see you all soon. Klaus & Paula Larsen. Jan.,2002:  After what seemed to be a long period of inactivity at the damaged creamery, signs of revitalization appeared. The renovations are under the direction of contractor Lou Aresco. All of the equipment was removed for repair, refurbishing or replacement. Then the demolition began. It would have to be a "gut rehab." Everything would have to be removed to the bare walls at the least. The tin ceiling had to be junked and was removed. All the plaster from walls and ceilings was removed down to the lath, a dirty, dusty task, accomplished by Kris Thompson. All the fixtures and electrical wiring had to be removed so that it could be brought "up to code." Then it was time to start building, just like one of the Larsens' recipes, from scratch! Feb.,2002:  Once the electricians finished their work, Ken McGhee of McGhee Drywall installed the fire-rated sheetrock and edging to the walls and ceilings. The ceiling was given a second layer of fire-rated sheetrock. The entire shop was then taped and spackled. After the walls were smoothed, dusted and sealed, the painting began. Mar.,2002:  Paula, the artistic person that she is, wanted to duplicate as closely as possible the color scheme of the original MSC which everyone had come to know. The bottom quarter of the walls was painted in a darker, "California lavender." The wall above this was painted in a lighter "Victorian lavender." Eventually a green molding will be installed to additionally separate the two fields visually. Klaus kept a watchful eye on the progress of the renovations and dealt with the inevitable issues which crop up during such work. [ Posted week of March 4, 2002: ] Main Street Creamery will be open again soon!! We are about half way finished: the new walls are complete as well as being freshly painted. A new ceiling and floor are coming next week, with the final touches on the electrical and plumbing by the last week of March. Then all the equipment will be brought back in. Then the ice cream!! So keep a lookout!! Our goal is Friday, April 5th. You will see lots of balloons and all your photos will be back too!! Our hours will be: Monday - Sunday, 11:00 AM until 9:00 PM. We can't wait to see everyone again!! Thanks for all your support.... Klaus and Paula Larsen On Wednesday morning, Mar. 13, Mr. Mark Gruber arrived with his crew from American Interiors, Inc., Brooklyn, NY, to install the completely new, authentic tin ceiling. The ceiling is actually embossed, tin-clad steel sheeting and trim. The ceiling is a classical squares pattern. The scaffolding erected, Abe installed a layer of plywood first to hold the tin securely. The original ceiling was only nailed to furring strips. Ricardo nailed the tinned sheets and finely hammered the edges to match. The two support beams were sheathed in a embossed, stippled pattern tin. Two types of tin molding completed this two-and-a-half day installation. The week of Mar. 18 was also a busy week at the Main Street Creamery site. Repairs were made to the subflooring damaged by use and the water which rained down upon it while the fire was battled. New tile flooring was installed. The next day, Sebby Aresco, electrician, and his crew (including Sebby Milardo) completed most of the wiring and the installation of the ceiling fixtures. The uplighting from the fixtures bounce off of the thankfully, unpainted, bright tin ceiling to provide a wonderfully diffuse ambience. Sebby Aresco's cousin, and general contractor of this renovation project, Lou Aresco, supervised the delivery of most of the shrink-wrapped, commercial creamery equipment. Some was new. Some was prior equipment which was completely overhauled, reconditioned and sanitized. Plumbers will complete the installation next week. The week of March 25 was again a busy week. Additional equipment was installed. The plumbers arrived to complete the installation of sinks and the ice cream making equipment. A mammoth air conditioner was installed in the door's transome to deal with all of the heat generated by all of the refrigeration equipment inside the tiny creamery. A needless radiator was removed creating a little more room at the front of the creamery. Finally, the building department of the Town of Wethersfield came in to inspect the premises for compliance with town codes and their preferences; no big problems were encountered. Not surprisingly, an additional smoke detector was ordered. While this was going on at the "shoppe," Paula was busy as ever working on another labor of love. All of the myriad of damaged pictures which had covered the walls of the creamery were reproduced from negatives. Night after night, Paula covered her dining room table with hundreds of 4x6 and 3x5 pictures. From these she worked to create new collages to replace the damaged ones. She struggled to recreate as closely as possible what had been there before. She knew repeat customers came to expect that their pictures (and especially those of loved ones) were still on her walls each time. As space will allow, some will go inside the creamery again and some will be installed just outside the door, she plans. With the promise to open less than one week away, the Larsens even worked on the weekend. They stocked inventory of ingredients, confectionary supplies and T-shirts, tested all of the equipment, installed several large panels of "menus" from which patrons will be able to choose their favorite icey treat. As an additional artistic tough, Paula attached jars of sample toppings between a couple of panels on the wall. To make their patrons' choises easier, Paula also attached to the wall sample cups with miniature signs listing the ingredients of special, named deserts. As of Sunday, 3/31, and only five full days remaining, Paula was very optimistic that they would keep their promise: Main Street Creamery will reopen on Friday, April 5th, at 11:00 a.m. for another, even more successful season -- barring any major last minute glitches. So here it is, April 5, 2002, not quite 5 full months from the time the fire forced the closing of the Main Street Creamery. Paula's and Klaus' determination has prevailed. Children and adults again queue up inside and outside of the MSC to order their favorite icy treats. Each is eager to wish the Larsen's well on their renewed commitment to Old Wethersfield. Outside again, engrossed in ice cream and toppings, everyone tolerates the cool air and somewhat overcast skies and licks the ice cream from their lips again... The dream has come true at the ~Main Street~ ~CREAMERY~   - W.N -

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