After years of discussion on what to do about the building, heavy machinery pounded on the Art Deco building for days. Other machinery was used to keep the dust down. Big trucks hauled away much of the demolition debris.

The demolition process was fully documented by the non-profit organization Big Ideas Inc. of New Ulm online.

Parts of the foundation, big concrete chunks, pipes and roots remain on the site at the corner of Center and German Street.

The memories of decades of dancing to the music of Lawrence Welk, the Andrew’s Sisters, Glenn Miller, the Six Fat Dutchmen, Whoopie John and many others will live on for a long time. Memories of bowling, eating and drinking won’t soon die either.

Architectural rendering The Concept design shows the Center Street side of the new building, taking the grade change from the alley to German Street into account.

“The debris should be gone by mid-January. I plan to be in touch with the developers in the next week or so for status updates. Plans are to start building in late spring or early summer,” said New Ulm City Manager Chris Dalton.

Signage and some other parts of the building will be incorporated into a new $20 million building with 80 to 90 apartments and 15,000 square feet of commercial space. Underground parking and more than a dozen electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are planned, according to Coldwell Banker Fisher Group Managing Director Dain Fisher of Mankato.

New construction is planned to begin this spring. The project is expected to take 18 months to complete.

“We have finalized our agreements with our architectural firm and will put out architectural drawings in the next few months,” said Fisher.

“We will work on how to incorporate signs and other building relics into the new design. It’s been a fun project. We have a firm understanding of what the building will look like and will show it to the public,” he said.

Fisher said the public has provided a lot of feedback on the project. Ideas included what to do with the large George’s Ballroom exterior sign.

Fisher said the sign was hauled to Mankato for refurbishing.

Another public feedback suggestion was creating new building space to reference the building’s past as ballroom. Other commercial space ideas included a grocery store, bike shop and pharmacy.

“I’m really enjoying doing this project. We got a good amount of public feedback and will use it along with the architects to shape the final concept. It’s really been a great experience all the way around. I really can’t say enough out it,” he said.

Fisher said future New Ulm projects could be developed further north on Minnesota Street.

“That’s the big picture in my mind. George’s starts. The Glockenspiel on Fourth North is where we finish. We’re going to look at all those sections over the next 10-15 years and understand what positive impacts we can make downtown,” he told the New Ulm Chamber Hot Topics group last year.