The Answer Person...asks a question!

The Answer Person says: "There was one finding of the Iowa Economic Development Authority's study of downtown Decorah that I'm still trying to wrap my head around, so it's time to ask readers for input.

The Iowa EDA report said the number one addition to downtown asked for by the public is a bakery. 

The Answer Person's reaction to that announcement was that there are already plenty of places in Decorah to get baked goods.  There's Beyond The Bar Bakery.  There's Java John's.  There's Oneota Food Co-op.  There's 301 Eatery.  There's Magpie.  There's Ruby's.  There's Impact Coffee.  There's Fareway.  There's Hy-Vee.  There's Walmart.  There's Kwik Star.  There's Casey's.  I have probably left out a business or two, but you should get the idea.

The other reaction I had is that the bakeries we did have--such as Waving Grains and Hart's Bakery/Back Home Bakery--have gone out of business.  Let's be honest about this--it's hard to get up at 3:00 in the morning so you can have baked goods ready by 7:00 a.m.  Obviously, no one has gotten rich doing this, either.

So I'm having difficulty seeing a way that a full-time bakery could prosper in Decorah.  But that's where you come in: e-mail us your comments about why you want a bakery in Decorah.  Send your comments to news@decorahnews.com and we'll share them later this week.