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TRYING TO SAVE THE DAV SNACK SHACK IN MADEIRA
BEACH, FLORIDA -- Former VA rehab center turned
snack shack was run by the DAV for many years.
The Snack Shack
We have two stories about this historic site.
First is about the history of the snack
shack...and second is about what appears to be a reprieve from
destruction.
First story here...
http://www.tbnweekly.
com/pubs/beach_beacon/content
_articles/060607_bhb-01.txt
Story below:
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Woman recalls glory days of Archibald Park
cabin
By WAYNE AYERS
MADEIRA BEACH – Recent efforts to “Save our
Snack Shack” have drawn public attention to the somewhat incongruous log
cabin sitting in the middle of Archibald Park.
The barrage of publicity associated with the campaign has caused many
residents to wonder about the structure’s past, while pondering its
future.
Dottie Miller of Seminole has been an eyewitness and participant in the
cabin’s Snack Shack glory days. She also has first-hand knowledge of the
cabin’s roots, which stretch back to the 1930s.
Miller was present for the grand opening of the Snack Shack, a beachside
fast food and beverage stand operated by volunteers of the Disabled
American Veterans and the DAV Auxiliary.
Miller and her late husband Cal were members of local DAV Chapter 13,
which opened the Snack Shack as a fundraising venture to aid local vets.
Cal Miller had an office on the cabin’s second floor where he helped
veterans file claims for their government benefits.
Opening day for the Snack Shack in 1975 was a big deal, Miller said.
Congressman C.W. Bill Young, R-Indian Shores, attended the event and
presented the chapter with an American Flag which had flown over the
nation’s Capitol. Miller still has the framed flag.
Miller was able to recite the Snack Shack’s menu, consisting of
hamburgers, hot dogs, chili dogs, cheese dogs, onion rings, French
fries, fish sandwiches and ice cream. Beach balls, floats, sand pails
and beach chairs also were available. Business owners and city workers
joined beachgoers for lunch at the cabin.
Visitors from nearby Bay Pines Hospital got special treatment.
“At least once a month, 15 to 25 veterans would come over and we’d treat
them all to hamburgers, French fries and a cold drink,” Miller said.
After lunch, the veterans would hang around, some playing cards, while
others just relaxed on the beach or walked the beach.
“Some of them just wanted someone to talk to,” Miller said.
The Snack Shack was open seven days a week, 52 weeks a year, from 8 a.m.
to 6 p.m. Enough volunteers applied to help so that half-day shifts were
possible.
“A lot of people would come down on holidays, before and after their
dinner,” Miller said
Community groups also made use of the cabin during its Snack Shack days.
The Boy Scouts met upstairs, as did the DAV chapter auxiliary and other
local groups.
“It was truly a gathering place for the community,” Miller said.
The log cabin’s history and association with veterans predates the Snack
Shack era, Miller said. The structure was originally built as a
rehabilitation center for veterans, and opened in 1932, the same year as
Bay Pines Hospital.
“There was nothing but trees and bushes (on the site). The VA came and
cleared it out and built the cabin,” Miller said. In the early days,
veterans came over for therapy and recreation.
The cabin’s rehabilitation center days lasted until the early ’70s. Then
it stood vacant for a few years, Miller said. Around 1974, a man tried
to open an informal restaurant in the structure. But he had to hire all
of his help, and the venture failed, Miller said.
The Disabled American Veterans chapter took over soon after, and the
Snack Shack was born, she said.
The cabin exterior’s “natural” wood finish is fairly recent, Miller
said. The original cabin color scheme was described by Miller as “burnt
red.” In the mid-1980s the city painted it blue, she said.
The scroll work on the ceiling also can be seen at Bay Pines Hospital.
“The same man painted them both,” Miller said.
The parking fee was all day for a quarter, which was paid on the way
out. “There was a gate which would open when you put in a quarter to let
you out,” Miller said.
Meters were installed by the city in the mid-1990s, and the rate was
raised to 50 cents an hour, she said. The DAV volunteers opened the coin
boxes and took the proceeds to the bank. The DAV was rewarded with a
portion of the parking revenue, Miller said.
The Snack Shack closed for good in 1998, ending a long era of service to
the community and area veterans. In 2000, the parking meter rate was
raised to $1 an hour, and restaurateur Frank Chivas began his long and
ultimately unsuccessful effort to transform the Snack Shack into a
destination beach restaurant. The city recently paid Chivas more than
$500,000 to settle a lawsuit over the matter.
The cabin’s demolition appeared certain until several months back when
Kaitlyn Chalke, a student at Madeira Beach Middle School, launched her
Save the Snack Shack campaign.
Dottie Miller hopes that effort succeeds … and that a renewed Snack
Shack will become a place of rekindled memories and memorable
experiences for generations to come.
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Second story here...
http://www.tbnweekly.
com/content_articles/050207_bhb-01.txt
Story below:
-------------------------
Madeira Beach Snack Shack granted a reprieve
By WAYNE AYERS
MADEIRA BEACH – In a surprise move, the City
Commission reversed three previous votes and decided to delay demolition
of the log cabin at Archibald Park for an indefinite period.
The planned takedown of the structure, scheduled for April 30, was put
off at the request of Mayor Charles Parker. Parker had resisted previous
pleas to save the cabin, but apparently was persuaded to change his
stance by a growing wave of citizen protest.
Parker’s remarks came at the outset of the April 24 regular commission
meeting at City Hall. An area adjacent to the meeting room had to be
opened to accommodate an overflow crowd.
The entire commission joined Parker in agreeing to a postponement.
Commissioner Steve Kochick said more time was needed to assess the
situation and decide the cabin’s fate.
“We need to step back and listen (to the citizens), and see what
direction we are going to take,” Kochick said.
Commissioner Arnold Alloway said a town hall meeting, yet to be
scheduled, would give citizens a chance to present their ideas for the
cabin.
“We’ll find out what people are looking for, and what can be done,” he
said.
Meanwhile, resident Eddie Lee announced he has the petition signatures
necessary to force the commission to consider an ordinance that would
preserve the cabin. Lee heads a citizens group seeking to save and
restore the building.
An employee of Bay Pines Veterans Hospital had an idea for future use of
the cabin that would retrace the building’s original purpose. Ramona
Hook said she can remember when the cabin was used strictly as a
beachside rehab setting for war-scarred veterans.
The hospital’s recreation director would be very interested in having
the veterans come over and enjoy the facility once again, she said.
“The patients could come and have a cookout, go into the water,” Hook
said.
Madeira Middle School student Kaitlyn Chalke, who initiated the idea of
preserving the Snack Shack cabin when demolition appeared certain, said
she was “totally awed” by the commission’s apparent change of heart.
Chalke said she remained wary of the commission’s intentions, however.
“We’re still on our toes, and are going ahead with our ‘save plan’ for
the cabin,” she said.
Chalke’s caution was confirmed when City Attorney Michael Connolly
reminded everyone that the commission’s action does not guarantee the
cabin’s long-term survival.
“The motion (passed by the commission) grants an indefinite stay (of
demolition). It is not a final decision in any way, shape or form,”
Connolly said.
Parker commented following the meeting that he had changed his mind on
the demolition issue because he had gotten the impression that a large
number of citizens were petitioning to save the cabin.
“This (decision) doesn’t mean that I am in favor of it necessarily, but
I may support it if it’s what the citizens want,” Parker said.
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Larry Scott --
