Elkader looks for positive outcome as gas stations close
By Willis Patenaude | Times-Register
In fall 2022, the Pronto and Fast Trak gas stations in Elkader were taken over by a new owner, which at the time was assumed to be Johnny Singh, who alluded as much in an interview from September of that same year. At that time, Singh talked about how good the community was, how he was looking to move to Elkader and start a new phase of his life and a willingness to do the best he could for the community.
However, since then, both locations have had a dubious existence in the community, with rumors aplenty swirling about questionable business practices and a litany of other topics, but rumors aren’t verifiable.
What is verifiable is the fact that, from the beginning, problems were apparent, starting with the fact Singh was not the actual property owner. That distinction belongs to a man named Max, a seemingly absent owner who lives in New Jersey, and who by all accounts has never been to Elkader. City administrator Jennifer Cowsert, as well as other city officials, have never personally spoken with him, and all efforts to get Max’s contact information to be included in this article were rebuffed.
In May 2023, a sewer issue at Pronto led to the city fronting a bill, the amount of which has never been specified, to cover the cost of fixing the business’s private sewer line that had become disconnected from the main line. This caused a back-up, leaving raw sewage on the sidewalk and leading to health concerns over what the DNR called an “illegal discharge” at the time.
More troubling was that, just a few months after being in operation, Cowsert’s efforts to contact the business ended in voicemails, hand delivered letters and certified mail going unanswered. Neither Singh, nor Max, returned a call or reached out to the city regarding the problem, so the council was left to vote on the matter, which ended in the city paying for the repair and eventually recouping that money by adding it onto the business’s taxes at the end of the year.
Council members Tony Hauber and Deb Schmidt voted in favor of this decision at the time, with Schmidt stating the decision was made “to take action to correct a public health issue.” Hauber said, “the city is doing its job of protecting citizens from irresponsible property owners.”
Those statements contrast starkly with developments in the past year, as both locations have seen an outwardly noticeable decline, including gas pumps being covered with garbage bags, thinned out store shelves, empty parking lots and a lengthy list of health code violations at Fast Trak that started in May of this year and extended through August. It ended with the store being cited for 14 risk factor violations with an additional 25 “good practice violations,” which was noted as an “extraordinarily large number.” This eventually led to a state order suspending the store’s food license on Aug. 26.
While Schmidt, the only council member who responded to questions for this article, stated mayor Josh Pope and Cowsert “did everything in their power to be involved in both trying to help at first, with little to no call backs from those who owned/managed their stores,” Cowsert indicated no one from the city reached out to the establishments or expressed concern over the violations.
Apart from Schmidt, who suggested she “was well aware of both businesses and how their standards of operations was hurting our community,” it appears everyone else found out the same time as the public, when an article link was posted in a Facebook group.
Now, two establishments with longstanding history and previous reputations as well-frequented places for locals and travelers sit with locked doors and fences surrounding the buildings. How this happened remains as much a mystery as the business owner, who, up to this point, only Main Street Elkader Director Amy Holst has actually spoken to directly, but not until the fence started going up around Pronto, which no one saw coming.
During her initial months as MSE director, Holst visited both stores, but conversations were informal. She found nothing to suggest there were any issues. Holst said she became aware of health code violations after reading about it in the newspaper, but did not reach out to the store.
As for the fences, Holst became aware through a text from a community member, prompting her to go to Pronto and talk with the company from Des Moines installing the fence during Witches Night Out. Holst then contacted Max, but did not obtain justification behind the fence going up or why both stores are now closed. Concerning the reasons, Holst said, “I don’t care. I want to move forward. I’m not going to live in the past.”
She preferred to put a “positive spin” on the situation. One that will likely last between 30 and 60 days or longer, with no clear resolution in sight. Max revealed only that he is looking for new tenants to move into the businesses.
A side issue is the economic impact this has had and could continue to have on Elkader. Holst decorated the fence at Pronto, trying to minimize the eyesore and turn it into a holiday fence, to “find positivity” and show tourists the town “doesn’t like this any better” than anyone else. The MSE director has also been active on social media, dispelling rumors and keeping people up to date.
Holst stated she doesn’t “think there were enough tourists that went to [Fast Trak]” and that people who are “coming to our community, they’re coming for our community, not just for gas, so that didn’t affect tourism at all.”
On this point, both Schmidt and Cowsert offered a differing response. Schmidt stated, “The impact for tourism was a negative keeping them open. They weren’t a good representative of our community and citizens of Elkader.”
Cowsert noted that there was a negative economic impact over the summer.
“Fast Trak gets a lot of business from people that are going to the river, and when it started, when it got to a certain point, I think not as many people were stopping,” Cowsert said.
Though Cowsert did not have any data to share, she said “anecdotal” evidence supports the claim.
Additionally, when questioned about the confidence in a positive outcome, considering the exact same person, as far as is known, is likely to still own both stores, Cowsert and the rest of the city is relying on Holst’s conversations with Max. As far as an optimistic outcome is concerned, Cowsert simply said, “I hope so.”
Holst has discussed adding a Mexican or Chinese restaurant, to bring some variety to the community, and has reached out to several business owners and potential renters or buyers, as well as receiving messages from people. Holst has also asked the community for assistance, if they know of any good opportunities that could take over the now vacant locations, so she can relay that information to Max.
Cowsert suggested leaving the Fast Trak as a gas station, due to heavy travel on Highway 13. Schmidt offered a response that agreed with both: leave one a gas station and the other, ideally Pronto, being turned into a Mexican, Chinese or Italian bistro downtown, with outdoor seating.
The current scenario is one in which Cowsert asserted the city never “imagined” it would be in. Holst stated that, so far, Max has been “great to work with,” and that they are progressing toward a positive outcome, though what that looks like remains unknown, as does any timeline for bringing this scenario to a close.