Quality Checked Plastics hopes to break ground within the next 30 days for a new 12,000 square foot building south of their present building in the Industrial Park. Manager Steve Linn said the new building will expand their production facility and storage capacity.
Louis Industries, owned by brothers Cecil and Leo Louis, are in the process of completing a 72 by 120-foot addition to their operation in the Industrial Park on Minnie Street. The new building will serve as a steel warehouse and provide additional office space. It is attached to their present structure, allowing them to now load and unload steel indoors instead of outside.
Bob Meyer, Paynesville, is moving his base of operation for Custom Pattern and Mold into larger quarters. He is located two miles east of Paynesville on Highway 23. He is presently renting a 30 by 40-foot space in the Bergstrom Company building. When the new 64 by 180-foot building in completed next door, he will move into the front half, doubling his work space. Meyer went into business for himself last February making patterns for fiberglass molds. He attended St. Cloud Vocational for auto body work in the late 1970s.
Since opening his new business, Meyer has an order to design a body for a sled to pull behind a snowmobile. New Vision Corp. in North Dakota has requested a design for pickup toppers. He is presently working on nine different styles of steps for new Ford pickups. Once those are done he will work on running boards for Chevrolet pickups and Suburbans. The design Meyer is most proud of is the motorcycle trailer he designed 10 years ago. He has since revamped the pattern to fit the needs of others.
A neighbor to Meyer in the Bergstrom complex is Jim Meinke who started Computerized Production Machining Inc. in December of 1995. Meinke worked with WetJet for several years as an engineer before branching out on his own. “I have 20 years experience machining and 16 years in computerized machining. I always wanted to branch out on my own and operate my own company,” Meinke said. “I enjoy a challenge.”
His work involves precision turning. “The machine is completely automated and can run for an hour by itself. All I have to do is monitor it occasionally between other jobs,” Meinke said. Among the items he has made are internal components for hinges, circuit board standards, a firing mechanism for Browning guns, rivets of all shapes and sizes, panel screws, speciality bolts, valves, hydraulic spools and gauges for checking seatbelt gaps for Ford, to name a few. He presently has two precision turning machines but is looking at purchasing a third to expand his capabilities and to make his operation more efficient.
Open less than seven months, the Country Inn motel is pleased with how well the motel has gone over in Paynesville they recently completed a deal with the city to purchase 50 more feet of land for future expansion of more rooms.
A building project drawing interest from area residents is the new Texaco Convenience Store. The Total Convenience Store was torn down and is being replaced by a new building. Partners in this new venture are the father and son teams of Bob and Dan Hanauska, Albany, and Ken and Darren Lange, Upsala. Hanauska’s own and operate Dan’s I-94 and Subway at Albany, and Langes own the Texaco in Upsala.
Once the project is completed in mid-December, the convenience store will be renamed H&L Express. The new building is 4,800 square feet and will feature an A&W franchise, seating about 40 people plus drive-up window service. The store will still feature chicken and other deli items. The hours of the new store will be 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Judy Lieser will still be the manager of the store, while Dave Lange will manage the A&W franchise. “We hope to have the town’s support in our new venture,” Hanauska said.
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