Oh wise and patient one, while watching my daughter's soccer team play on the Silver Lake field, I've wondered if all the goose droppings threaten the health of the kids? — Mike K.
Another Answer Man fan, Hazel at Shorewood Place i n Rochester, has noted that people walk their dogs on the playing fields near her home and don't bother to clean up after them. Hazel appropriately wonders what kind of health issue that raises for kids playing out there.
I hate to poo-poo the health threat, but unless the playing field is entirely covered with goose or dog poop, it's relatively minimal. There are all kinds of parasites and pathogens in goose droppings, and the impact on water quality of ponds nearby can be sickening, but the more realistic hazard is that kids will slip and break a leg on the droppings.
The state public health veterinarian said in a news story recently that her office receives only a few complaints per year and that "we haven’t identified people getting sick from goose poop exposure."
The city's aware of the problem with geese in parks and on playing fields , needless to say, and has a management program in place, especially in Silver Lake Park. Wish them luck.
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Dear Answer Man, when will Broadway Bar and Pizza open? I'm hungry and thirsty.
As of Nov. 1, you'll be able to slake your thirst and satisfy your hunger at Broadway Bar and Pizza, in the former Timber Lodge Steakhouse building just north of 41st Street Northwest along the U.S. 52 west frontage road. You might watch for a "soft opening" on Halloween, just in case.
The original Broadway Station restaurant is at 2025 West River Road N. in Minneapolis — look for the caboose out front, near the railyards and riverfront. The Twin Cities-based chain was founded in 1953 by John Spallacci, "who arrived in Minneapolis from Gorviano Valli, Italy, (and) brought a special pizza recipe with him." There are now 18 shops in the Cities, and Eau Claire, Wis., also is due to get one soon.
A few people have asked recently whether Rochester really needs another pizza pub, and I always answer with gusto, "Si, ovviamente!" Or I usually do, anyway.
Ciao!
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RIVERFRONT JUNKYARD: Ray Phelps-Bowmansent this note in August, and I haven't made much progress with it. Time to turn it over to you, my resourceful readers:
"When I moved to Rochester in the early 1970s, I remember walking along Silver Creek near the State Hospital and seeing a row of old cars dug into the creek bank. The cars looked like they were from the '20s or '30s and seemed to be used as erosion control. Am I remembering things correctly or is my mind simply playing tricks on me in my old age?"
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Let's reassure Ray that he's sharp as a tack and find the answer to this.
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BOMBS AWAY:Last week I disposed of the myth that Mayo High School has a grandiose bomb shelter underneath it. Answer Man fan Dean Johnsonadds this to the record:
"Edison School, now the Edison administration building, did have some sort of bomb shelter under it. There was an access door to it where the board now meets, and also one across the hall in whatever office that is. I never got the gumption to explore it but now wish I would have."
I called Melissa Brandt in the district offices at the Edison Building and she couldn't find anyone who knows whether the school had a true Civil Defense-style bomb shelter. The 1915 building was expanded in 1950 and '57, though, when bomb shelters were fashionable.
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PRESTON PREVIEW:Since the subject came up in a recent column, I'll point out that the Winona County Habitat for Humanity ReStore will add a drop site in Preston as of Oct. 26, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Preston Lumber. Henceforth, the drop site will be open on the fourth Tuesday of every month. For info, call (507) 474-6075.
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WHEN IT REIGNS, IT POURS:Readers continue to shower me with information on the so-called "Gypsy Queen" who died in Rochester in 1959. Darleen Mensing, for one, says, "While I was working at One-Hour Martinizing Dry Cleaners, two men brought in dresses of velvet and satin for cleaning. They were the Gypsy Queen's. The interesting thing about them was how they were sewn together by hand with twine string."
Another reader, Dave McFarlin, did some legwork for me and found that the "Queen's" legal name was Rosa McGill, according to the death certificate, and that she died July 16, 1959, at age 60.
Also, I contacted Jane Campion, one of Rochester's essential citizens, who I had heard might have some memory of the Queen's visit. Jane says, "I think I was a night supervisor at that time, and I just recall there were large numbers of the clan around as she was dying, and the front yard of the hospital was their staying space. I'm quite sure the message from Sister Mary Brigh or Sister Generose was that the healing ministry of Saint Marys was open and shared with whoever comes to the door. I also recall how very supportive the Mackens (of Macken Funeral Home) were to this group of people when the Queen died."
