GREAT FALLS — After more than 40 years in Great Falls, the building that has been home to McCullough’s Wrecker Service on Second Avenue North is going to be demolished to make way for a new commercial development.
Theresa Andrews says her family bought the building back in the 1980’s when it was just a gas station and added on the wrecker service. Her dad Art Bundtrock was very involved in the Great Falls community and wanting to keep the community moving forward.
After losing both of her parents, Theresa and her brother James had to decide what to do with the property that was left behind. After growing up in Great Falls and spending so much time with her parents at the shop, she said the decision to tear the building down was difficult, and the end to her parents’ legacy did not go the way they had planned. So she sat down with her brother to decide what would happen next that would still honor her parents and help Great Falls.
Theresa said, “We want to redevelop it into commercial property, something that benefits the community, and something that benefits the base (Malmstrom) being part of our large community since we’re on the base line. It’s just a matter of seeing positive changes instead of being sad about the past.”
Lillian Sunwall with the Great Falls Development Authority has been working with Theresa and the project to make sure all the clean-up that takes place is handled with care, as it is considered hazardous because of some of the materials involved. The demolition has been in the works a long time, including assistance from the MT Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Petrol Board to provide funding.
“Even as a citizen of Great Falls I’m proud that we have the Air Force base here, but I’ve been really looking at the way this corridor looks and it’s not the most ‘pretty’ entrance to our base,” says Sunwall.
When it comes to what will eventually be on the property, Theresa says it is a matter of getting the right people involved. They are looking for suggestions and ideas about what the Great Falls community wants to see. She said there have been suggestions of healthy fast food chains, and she has looked into what would be required for a company like In 'N Out Burger or Five Guys Burgers and Fries to open up here.
Theresa says that she hopes this property would be the start of redeveloping the entire corridor into something Great Falls can be proud of. “It’s like this forgotten strip. You can watch the cars go by, it’s not forgotten it’s just untapped,” says Andrews.
She says there have been a lot of ideas tossed around of what can be done with the property, and after speaking with developers and architects, she has enjoyed imagining what the space could be.
If there is anyone with ideas or suggestions of what could be developed in the space, you can email mssyandrews@comcast.net.
A note from Gerry Knight, PR Manager for Miracle Mile/McCullough’s Wrecker shared a very heartfelt dedication and goodbye to the building.
After 40+ years of professionalism by Art and Sharon Bundtrock owner/operators of Miracle Mile/McCullough's Wrecker and operating 31 years of the Christmas through New Year's HOME FREE program, they have both passed away and the buildings are being demolished Tuesday (moved to Thursday) morning. I would like a video on location, please. Personally, I am saddened to see the shop closed and soon to be gone. An era of absolute towing and auto repair professionalism draws to a close. Art had received national recognition through the ACE mechanics and the National Towman awards multiple times, wrote for MOTOR auto manuals, taught automotive tech at Great Falls University many years ago. Sharon maintained the books, dispatched wreckers, ran the shops, and was Montana's FIRST female licensed tow-man. True personal friends for life, their legacy lives on.
Thank you and many blessings,
Gerry Knight
