I laughed when I looked back at the Unorganized Territory that I wrote for last year’s Fisherman’s Picnic. Last year at this time I wrote about the ubiquitous seagull and how it is a symbol—albeit a sometimes-annoying symbol—of the North Shore. Little did I know that this Fisherman’s Picnic, the City of Grand Marais would be facing a seagull—and pigeon—problem.
Seagulls and pigeons have been in the news in recent weeks after the demolition of the old Shore Theater building apparently created a homeless population of nuisance birds. Apparently, the old theater building discreetly housed dozens and dozens and dozens of seagulls and pigeons. All of them now wandering the roofs of other businesses and homes in Grand Marais, looking for a nice nesting spot.
The community appears to be fairly unified in its relief that the crumbling old theater building has been removed. During the severalweeks long demolition process, the Cook County News-Herald didn’t receive letters to the editor calling to “save the theater.” No one chained him or herself to S&C Masonry’s demolition equipment to stop progress.
Some sadness has been expressed at losing a historical landmark. A lot of older community members remember date nights at the Shore Theater, holding hands in the dark watching epic westerns and classic romances. The theater closed before I reached dating age, but I do remember going to several movies— The Ghost and Mr. Chicken, Parent Trap, Clarence the Cross-Eyed Lion, McClintock, Cat Ballou and others.
I also remember a number of Christmas celebrations at the theater. Kids were invited to a holiday movie and we all received a little bag of holiday ribbon candy and nuts from Santa.
I was not born yet when Santa arrived by airplane—and crashed (gently) into the theater building in 1949, but I know the infamous tale well. As a twist to the usual holiday celebration, someone decided to have Santa Claus arrive by airplane. Kids and parents lined Wisconsin Street to watch the jolly old fellow arrive, only to receive the shock of their lives. As the plane piloted by Willard Watters touched down, it veered out of control and rolled into the theater. Fortunately, no one was hurt and Santa (Harold Nelson) disembarked and carried out his delivery of candy and popcorn balls. The story is a North Shore legend, one that has been preserved in the December 22, 1949 issue of the Cook County News-Herald and passed on through generations. We will have this memory—and so many others of the old movie house— whether the theater building stands or not.
I always hoped that the theater would be revived and used to perhaps offer at least second-run films on the weekends. But as the building sat year after year, it became obvious that was not to be. So, if the old building could not be rehabilitated to its once elegant status, it is better that it is gone and the memories remain.
The problem though, is that there also remains an abundance of birds. For people like me who recall Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds (seen at the Shore Theater, coincidentally), it is eerie. Because of that classic thriller, I get a little nervous whenever I see a flock of birds in a tree. So the hundreds of gulls peeking at people from Grand Marais rooftops this summer are a little unnerving.
And folks at the Grand Marais Post Office—especially the rural carriers who are working near a new nest on the post office roof—have to run the gantlet past a mother gull protecting her babies. This happens occasionally, but this summer seems to be an extreme gull year.
And compounding the seagull situation this year, most likely because of the theater demolition, are hundreds of homeless pigeons. This has been a problem in the past, but not to this degree. When Betsy Bowen Studio converted the old church building at First Avenue West and Third Street to gallery and concert space, there was a plethora of pigeons in the neighborhood. They seem to have found new nesting spots.
It is hoped that the new crop of refugee birds will settle down somewhere away from downtown Grand Marais. A number of business owners attended a Grand Marais City Council meeting to talk about the increased bird population, letting the city know they were taking action to try to keep the birds off of downtown roofs. Hopefully the scare tactics will work.
In the meantime, enjoy the freewheeling birds. They do add character to our little harbor town.
Drama is life with the dull parts cut out of it.
Alfred Hitchcock
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