ROCKFORD, Mich. -- A morning fire destroyed most of the Corner Bar in Rockford on August 14, but construction crews have begun work to salvage the part of the building that survived. That makes good on a promise the bar owners gave after the fire.
On Friday, they began to brace the exterior walls, after the owners received approval from their insurance company to proceed. It was the first step in the reconstruction of the nearly 150-year-old building. The iconic Corner Bar opened in the 1930s.
Once the walls are braced and deemed secure, police expected to partially reopen North Main and Courtland streets for the first time since August 15.
Although no official cause of the inferno has been determined yet, some firefighters speculated that a dumpster fire may've ignited a gas-line explosion in the basement, causing the fire to spread. No one was injured.
There's no word yet when the restaurant may reopen.
