MANKATO, Minn. (FOX 9) – The Mankato City Council is set to vote on a new downtown location for the Rapidan Dam Store after flooding over the summer rendered the current location uninhabitable.

The new location, the former Wagon Wheel Café, was empty but is considered ideal for reopening. The café, with its perfect vintage and old-school interior, is already being renovated and should be ready for business sometime in September.

David Hruska, owner of the Rapidan Dam Store, which will now include the cafe, shared his excitement about the new location with FOX 9.

“Yes, it has that old-fashioned feel,” Hruska said. “But the nice thing about it is that it’s about twice the size of what we’re used to.”
The reopening of the cafe was met with overwhelming support from the community. Several fundraisers and the sale of about a thousand t-shirts helped the Hruska family bring the Dam Store back into business.

The Rapidan Dam Store was demolished after authorities concluded the building would likely be swallowed by the Blue Earth River (Courtesy of Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office). (Included in delivery)

“We could never have done all this alone,” said Hruska. “This is how we manage – with the support of our entire family.”

The reopening comes seven weeks after the Blue Earth River began eroding the shoreline around the Rapidan Dam, eventually leading to the closure of the bridge adjacent to the dam due to unstable piers. The county purchased the original Dam Store site with plans to demolish it, leaving only the store’s tile floor.

The bridge needs to be replaced, a process that could take several years after financing is secured.

However, Hruska remains optimistic about rebuilding the Dam Store at its original location.

“That’s not hope. It’s going to happen, you just don’t know when,” he said. “That’s the problem.”