One of the biggest questions concerning the downtown area of Manitowoc for the past several years has been “What is going to happen to the former Mirro property?” Last night the City of Manitowoc Committee of the Whole finally approved an answer.
Mayor Justin Nickels explains that “The Council voted unanimously, along with myself, to move forward with an official agreement with the Boys & Girls Club to officially give them the Mirro property land.”
There is more work that needs to be done on the site according to the Mayor, as the site needs to be cleaned up, and a structural analysis needs to be done to see if “we can still use some of the old foundation for future buildings.”
Mayor Nickels says that the Boys and Girls Club will take control of the half of the property located on Washington Street, which would fill the hole that was left with the building’s demolition in 2017.
Mayor Nickels reminisced about the former Mirro Company, saying “Mirro was so important to this community for over 100 years, providing a lot of opportunities for hundreds of thousands of families. Looking at that as the past is significant, and I think looking at the future, being able to provide families once again an opportunity where there is a lot of need with the Boys & Gils Club…is a great future for that site.”
Bill Bertsche, the Executive Director of the proposed Manitowoc Boys and Girls Club, has a background as a retired school principal and believes in the before and after school attributes that an organization like the Boys & Girls Club can bring to the city.
Bertsche said it would “probably be about a 15,000 square foot facility. The central location would make that an outstanding place for a club that could serve all the kids in our community, and also be very visible, and a site that could serve the county.”
The details of the agreement still need to be finalized, and an official agreement will be written up with both the Mayor and the Boys & and Girls Club will sign, making the proposal a reality.
