Carrier Mills: Old Field's Five and Dime building demolished
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Workers demolished what was left of the old Field's Five and Dime building in downtown Carrier Mills on Monday.
The building partially collapsed June 16, leaving a pile of rubble, blocked streets, headaches for village officials and a displaced business. The building was adjacent to Angel Scent florists, which closed after the collapse. The business has not reopened and the future is uncertain for owners Geri Morgan and Carla Kirkland.
"We have waited 30 days to hear official word from our insurance company and we've heard nothing," Morgan said.
"We had to move out after the building collapsed because they wanted us to minimize our loss."
Doc Maier demolition brought a crew and a trackhoe, which picked through the building and brought what was left of the structure to rubble. Old appliances, an elevator shaft, wood, bricks and scrap metal could be seen among the remains. Some of the bricks had been stacked on pallets.
Derek Field, a former village board member, remembered playing in the building as a child when it was owned by his grandparents, Dude and Pearl Field. Merchandise for the dime store was kept upstairs in old apartment rooms. The building was home to Field's Five and Dime from about 1965 to 1979 or 1980, Chris Field, Derek Field's father, said in June.
Watching the collapse and subsequent problems unfold has been difficult for owners of Angel Scent.
"It's been a nightmare. We were four days from selling and now we have no idea what we're going to do, physically or financially," Morgan said.
Oak Street and Clark Street have been blocked since the collapse last month. Mayor Louis Shaw hopes to get the streets open again soon, but doesn't have an exact timetable.
"Its going to be a couple of days, probably. I honestly don't know until the end of the day when the work is done," Shaw said. "It's just a matter of whether their equipment is out of the street. If the building is down, I don't see that it presents a hazard to traffic."
Downtown Carrier Mills bears little resemblance to 30 years ago. In the last 15 years or so, two buildings have collapsed and one - the old Mitchell Pool Room -- has burned. In addition, the old bank building at the corner of Main and Oak streets was demolished a few years ago and the old James Cleaners building was taken down sometime after the owner retired.
The old Field Five and Dime building site is owned by Carol Wheeler, who hired Maier to finish the demolition and clear the streets.