Published: November 15, 2009 10:51 pm      

Windber landmark reborn: Bargain store opens in former Eureka building

WINDBER — Jim and Ann Petrunak expected to greet a fair number of bargain shoppers during Petrunak’s Clearance Outlet’s first week of business.

They were a little surprised by the volume of well-wishers and those hoping to recapture a moment of their community’s past.

“So many people have been coming in and saying, ‘Thank you for doing something with this building,’ ” Ann Petrunak said from behind the cash register in the former Eureka Department Store building.

Built in 1899, the building at the corner of Somerset Avenue and 15th Street was the company store for the Berwind-White Coal Mining Co. town.

“It was the hub,” Jim Petrunak said. “Everything ran through here.”

Its central location and historic significance are what attracted him to the cavernous building when he decided to follow his longtime dream of opening a clearance outlet business.

“I was always good at finding bargains,” Jim Petrunak said. “I bought a lot, but I never had a purpose for a lot of it.”

He has been turning his bargains into income by reselling items at a monthly auction, but the business was growing too fast for the venue. Scratch-and-dent items, inventory buyouts, special-order returns and warehouse auctions provided a growing inventory.

“I was getting so much stuff, I couldn’t sell it all at an auction,” he said.

That’s when Petrunak approached the Eureka building owners about renting the primary ground floor area as a retail store.

He was told the owners were looking to get out of their role of landlord and the entire building was for sale. It includes the Dollar General store that fronts on 15th Street.

After some investigation and thought, the Petrunaks said, “Yes.”

Weeks of cleaning, changing light bulbs and doing other repairs led up to the opening of Petrunak Clearance Outlet, featuring bathroom fixtures, showers, carpet, tools and many other items.

“I don’t even know what it is sometimes until I open the crates and think, ‘What did I just buy?’ ” he said. “I do well with building supplies.”

Two other businesses have opened in the unused sections of the Eureka building.

S.J. Antiques moved into space off Somerset Avenue, and CASA Arcade is operating on the second floor.

Auctioneer Sam Hartman plans to open an auction house in the former warehouse section.

“He was doing my auctions for me,” Petrunak said.

“When he found out I was purchasing the building, he wanted in here. He thinks it’s a good location.”

Petrunak realizes the building has some serious issues, and plans to start renovations with the installation of two new furnaces before the onset of winter. A relatively new roof and structural soundness of the building made it a good investment, he said.

“I have lots of plans for the new year and in the spring,” he said. “I didn’t do this thinking I was going to make money in five years. This is a long-term thing.”