Old gas station site to become wrestling facility in Oelwein

A wrestling club is working to turn the land that an old gas station sits on into a wrestling facility.

It's over in Frederick Avenue on the North edge of town in Oelwein. The building is going to be knocked down to make way for a brand new wrestling facility. Travis Bushaw, a realtor and the head of the Oelwein Wrestling Club, purchased the property from the city.

"They helped us find a space that worked, and right now we're working with our chamber area development to come up with funding. We're doing some huge fundraisers," Bushaw said.

A neighbor who lives behind the old run down gas station has some nostalgia for it.

"I actually worked at this business back in 1978 at the garage," David Roth said.

He's ready to see it go.

"It hasn't been open for so long, and it's been, of course, ugly. The rodents have been here to visit, and so we're just happy and glad that it's finally going to be taken care of," Roth said.

Bushaw says the high school is planning on using the facility for practice as well.

"We're kind of at capacity in our room right now. They built a new room probably about a decade ago thinking it would accommodate the students we had, and it's too small," Bushaw said.

The facility will be 6,000 square feet and feature wrestling mats, batting cages, and a weightlifting area.

"It's ambitious, but we're hoping by the time fall rolls around the building is completed. And then when wrestling starts in November, we're ready to go," Bushaw said.

He says many in the community are happy to see the land finally put to use.