This file part of www.watertownhistory.org website
Watertown Square
NW corner, Church and
Bernard streets
1979-2009
Portion of image WHS_005_858
Aerial view of, 2007, prior to demolition in 2009.
1979
Originally constructed in 1979, the Watertown Square Shopping Center was formerly anchored by a
Kohl's Department Store, a Kohl's Food Store and a Walgreens.
1999 Kohl's Closes
04 07 A grocery
store which has operated nearly 20 years in Watertown has announced the doors
will close in two weeks. Kohl's Food
Store, located in the Watertown Square shopping center along South Church
Street, will close its doors permanently at 6 p.m., April 24. The closing is the result of a corporate
initiative. The local store's 23 full-
and part-time employees were told Wednesday about the closing, although
speculation had been circulating prior to the formal announcement. Those employees, some of whom have worked
there since the store's opening in 1980, have been offered jobs at other
stores. WDT
2002
Most of the existing complex has been vacant since
April of 2002 when the Kohl's Department Store closed and a new location was
constructed just south of Interstate 94 on state Highway 26 in Johnson
Creek. The Kohl's Food Store has been
closed since March of 2001.
2008
08 17 This section derived in part from Watertown Daily Times:
The
Watertown Square site slipped dramatically some years ago when Kohl's Food
Stores closed and then a couple years later the Kohl's Department Store moved
to much larger quarters in the new retail development at the intersection of
state Highway 26 and Interstate 94 in Johnson Creek. Without that big retail attraction, some of
the smaller businesses immediately felt the loss of the traffic and some
closures followed.
At one
time Church Street was a quiet city street that dead-ended at Milwaukee
Street. There was just an open field
gradually rising to the railroad tracks.
Somewhere in the early 1960s a decision was made to make the extension
of Church Street the new location for state Highway 26 and major resculpting of
the hill got under way. That opened the land on the south side of the railroad
for development.
Originally
the Kohl's site was the home of a small department store chain called Value
Village. That lasted a few years and
then the building was razed and everything was started over for the Kohl's food
and department stores.
Since the
present buildings were constructed in the mid-1980s, there had been a host of
retailers that have operated in one of the buildings. Among them:
Adventureland Video, The Barbers, Boy Blue, Burger King, Como
Photo/Video, Groundwater, Joann Fabrics, Kohl's Department Store, Kohl's Food
Store, Mimi's Hallmark, Payless Shoes, Professional Cleaners, The Pool Guy,
Walgreens, Cost Cutters, Wales Pets, Maxwell Street, Video Towne, Eye Care
Optical, Video Town USA, Radio Shack, World of Pets, Nutri-Systems, George
Webb, Jefferson Tile Company, Drive-In Movies, Play It Again Sports, Carlson
Travel, Oasis Creations, Stein Optical, Watertown Medical Center, On the Road
Liquidators and Pay Day USA. And, we've
probably missed a few as well.
12 31 Watertown Square Plans Outlined
The Watertown
Common Council Tuesday delayed taking action on a developer's agreement for the
former Watertown Square property because the
documents were presented minutes after the meeting started, but city officials
gave an update on the proposed development plans for the approximately
10.5-acre site on the corner of South Church and Bernard streets.
Pick ‘n Save
on the east side of South Church Street will move to a new 60,000-square-foot
building at the Watertown Square parcel, which is owned by E J Plesko &
Associates in Madison. Plans also include a 500-square-foot building that will
house a Bank of Lake Mills.
The current
structures that were the former locations of Mimi's Hallmark and Walgreens will
remain on the property and be refurbished.
Completion
date and plans to be up and operating are in April of 2010.
Because the
Watertown Square parcel is located within a tax incremental financing district,
the city will provide E J Plesko & Associates with approximately $3 million
if the property reaches a construction value of $16 million. The property is
currently assessed at about $3.5 million.
Originally
constructed in 1979, the Watertown Square Shopping Center was formerly anchored
by a Kohl's Department Store, a Kohl's Food Store and a Walgreens.
Most of the
existing complex has been vacant since April of 2002 when the Kohl's Department
Store closed and a new location was constructed just south of Interstate 94 on
state Highway 26 in Johnson Creek. The Kohl's Food Store has been closed since
March of 2001. Watertown Daily Times, 12 31 2008
2009
04 28 Conditional use permits for the Watertown
Square shopping center on the corner of South Church and Bernard streets were
approved by the Watertown Plan Commission.
The proposed site plans for the property call for Pick 'n Save to move
from its current location east of South Church Street into a 60,000-square-foot
building on the Watertown Square site that is owned by E J Plesko &
Associates in Madison. Plans also
include a 10,500-square-foot facility on the southeast corner of the parcel
that will house a Bank of Lake Mills. The Bank of Lake Mills will initially occupy
approximately 6,000 square feet of the building and one other tenant will rent
out the remaining space. The current
15,000-square-foot structure that is the former location of Mimi's Hallmark and
10,600 square feet of building space on the northern edge of the property will
be restored and used by multiple tenants.
All of the other buildings on the parcel will be razed. WDT
Set of images prior
to demolition / Click upon to enlarge:
Cross
References:
