One of the tallest buildings in Shawano is now owned by one of the best known names in business.
Twig’s Beverage Inc. has purchased the former Farmers Brewing Co. property on Main Street with plans to restore and renovate the 100-year-old building that towers over the city’s downtown.
Saying they are unsure what they will end up doing with the old brewery, Twig’s officials have reached out to members of the community for ideas on reusing the vacant seven-story structure.
Suggestions offered by the community so far include an art museum, business incubator, restaurant, youth center, condominiums, dance club, supper club, community center, hotel and comedy club.
Dan Hartwig, owner of Twig’s Beverage, said it could take a couple of years before the property is refurbished and the owners are ready to commit to a new identity. One thing is certain: Hartwig does not plan on demolishing the old brewery.
“This is like history in Shawano,” he said. “I don’t want to see it ripped down.”
Built in the early 1900s, the Farmers Brewing facility at 713 S. Main St. operated as a brewery. Its products included Shawano Club Beer. The operation then was taken over by Van Dyck Brewing of Chicago before beer production ceased there in the 1950s.
Another local business called Wright Broiler Co. later converted the structure into a warehouse for frozen chickens and other poultry products.
The property has been vacant since approximately the 1990s.
Jesse Borlen, curator of the Shawano County Historical Society, said the building harkens back to a time when as many as six breweries operated in Shawano, all of which have since faded into the history books.
Borlen said he was pleased to hear that the Farmers Brewing facility had been acquired by someone intent on historic preservation rather than demolition.
“It’s a good thing that they saved it,” he said. “We’re very excited.”
The former brewery was acquired about 10 years by Sal and Dominic Badalamenti, the brothers who own Luigi’s Pizza and Pasta restaurant, located one block away at 607 S. Main St. The brothers had hoped to open a new brewery in the seven-story building, but their dreams never materialized.
Sal Badalamenti said the brewery concept proved to be too expensive of an undertaking, and the brothers were forced to give up on the idea.
“It never worked out,” he said.
A few months ago, Twig’s Beverage started showing interest in the property, which stands across the street from the bottling plant where Twig’s produces its beloved Sun Drop Soda and other soft drinks at 711 S. Washington St.
The two sides completed the transaction earlier this week, although terms of the sale have not been disclosed.
Badalamenti said that while he remains disappointed that his new brewery development fell through, he is happy that the property ended up in Hartwig’s hands.
“I’m glad that he got it,” Badalamenti said. “At least it’s somebody from Shawano.”
Hartwig and his family have more than just a passing interest in the Farmers Brewing building. His father, Floyd Hartwig, started the soft drink business in the 1950s as a tenant on one of the upper floors of the old brewery. When he got tired of hauling materials up and down so many floors, Floyd Hartwig moved his business across the street to where the Twig’s bottling plant still operates.
Dan Hartwig said he was delighted to acquire the old brewery and to embark on a redevelopment effort with his own children — sons Lucas, Jacob and Ben.
“We’ve kind of been working on this for a while,” Hartwig said.
The buyer of the property is an investment group called Pordnus III LLC. Pordnus is “Sun Drop” spelled backwards.
Excited by the potential of the large brewery property, Lucas Hartwig immediately took to the Facebook social media site to solicit redevelopment ideas from the general public. Lucas Hartwig said the central location and history of the building make this an important project for all of Shawano.
“This is only going to be a success,” he added, “if the community accepts it.”
With much of the building’s interior currently in piles of rubble, significant repairs will be necessary before the property’s future comes into clearer focus.
Dennis Heling, chief economic development officer of Shawano County Economic Progress Inc., said the unique size and shape of the former brewery make it an ideal spot for creative new concepts, possibly including a mixture of uses.
Heling said he was pleased to hear that Twig’s Beverage had purchased the property, and he looked forward to seeing what they come up with.
“That’s an iconic building in this community,” he said.
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