Tazlina Businesses Rebuilding After 2020 Fire

The new Casa de la Arte, under construction. Photo by Naomi Young.

By Allison Sayer

In December of 2020, the local community watched in horror as the Tazlina Trading Post, the adjoining businesses, and a private residence were destroyed by a fire. Although the fire was devastating, all are grateful that no people were harmed by the fast moving blaze. 

Months later, and with much community support, business owners continue to rebuild. In early September, I caught up with Kendra Harder, Naomi Young, and Jim Horrell, the proprietors of Kendra’s Kreations, Casa de la Arte, and the Tazlina Trading Post. 

Young reflected on the particular devastation of losing not just a building, but that “everything in there was handmade.” Her first reaction was to get sewing. Young’s mother, LaVonne Armstrong, took up crochet hooks with a vengeance. Armstrong typically comes to the Copper Valley during the summer months, but due to COVID-related travel concerns she has been in the area for about two years. 

“After the fire we just started working,” she said.

Young had already purchased property in Glennallen four years ago, and she and her husband, Nigel, had slowly been constructing a new location for her business there that could accommodate more artists and a larger classroom. However, “we were just doing it out of pocket,” she said, so progress had been slow. 

“I did not have insurance. With the fire we did have a GoFundMe account that was started,” she said. She credits GoFundMe, Lions Club, and other donations, construction help from numerous friends - “our ‘Alaska family’ that has developed” - and additional volunteer help from the high school Honor Society and Mount Drum Lutheran Church mission groups for helping her and Nigel to push the building forward. 

“The community has been so wonderful,” said Young. She hopes that she can pay it forward herself in the future. 

Young is hoping to reopen shortly before New Year’s of 2022. She says, “Everybody that had been selling has called and said, ‘I’m making stuff.’” New vendors have expressed interest in selling their work at the new location as well. Between that and the prolific work done by herself and her mother, she expects to have a good inventory when she opens her doors. 

The Tazlina Trading Post is in the process of rebuilding on the original site. 

“We made that decision that night,” said current proprietor Jim Horrell. The business was owned for many years by his parents, Don and Joyce, who are retiring and who deferred to their son for comment on this story. Horrell hopes the business will be ready to open by December. 

Horrell says that with the opportunity to rebuild, certain aspects of the store will be updated. 

“The store, once it’s built, won’t look like the old one at all. We have redesigned it to make it user friendlier with walk-in coolers and all that. It will be an updated and more modern version of itself.” Due to the current high cost of building materials, however, the new store will be smaller than the family had originally hoped. 

“It’s been a heck of a year,” said Horrell, ruefully reflecting on “the joys of doing business in the state at the modern moment.” He said, “We had some pretty major delays around getting construction going and finding materials. The permitting process took two months longer than I expected… When we finally had the permit and were ready to pour [concrete], there was no rebar in the state of Alaska.” 

Horrell says he has gotten through this year by “Keeping myself busy, and solving one problem at a time. Basically that’s all I can do, otherwise you go kind of stir crazy.” He says his parents are also recovering from the initial shock. “For my parents that’s 50 years of their life that went up in smoke.” When I asked how they were doing, he said, “Better now. Having something to do helps.” 

Horrell said he would like to “Thank the community for all their support and concern over the fire and my family’s mental health. I appreciate that from all of them.” When asked whether he had any advice for other local business owners, Horrell replied, “Read your insurance policy.”

Kendra Harder recalls of the fire, “Of course that was a devastating realization when everything was going up in flames and we could tell that it couldn’t be salvaged. There was also gratefulness that no one was hurt. Things can be replaced.” One of the losses that was poignant for her was the destruction of little gifts from clients that had accumulated in her space over the years. 

“I did not have any kind of insurance, but I had a lot of support,” said Harder. “The community has been amazing. My sister made me a GoFundMe, and that was very helpful.” 

Harder plans to rebuild her business on her own property on the Klutina River. She had wanted to start rebuilding this summer, but decided to postpone due to the current high cost of building materials.  “I had some plans drawn up,” she said, “and a possible rental to build on with a compatible business - mani/pedi, skincare, massage… I’d like that to be in my plan, but we’ll just see what money allows.” 

Harder is currently working on hair in a space that belongs to Cross Road Medical Center. “Cross Road has been amazing to me,” she said, “I’ve had a place there for the last seven months. I’m using the old doctor’s house, and it’s very beautiful, but I’m very much underusing it.” The doctor’s house is one of few spaces that meets the criteria she needs as a hairdresser. The water supply is important, and carpet is out. 

Overall, Harder said, “I’m hopeful looking towards the future. I’m really grateful for this amazing community that reached out with all sorts of encouraging words and financial help.”

Thanks to the anonymous reader who suggested that the paper follow up with these businesses on their rebuilding plans. If there is a story you would like to see in the paper, please let us know by visiting our homepage: Copperriverrecord.net. 

We would like to apologize for some omissions in our coverage of businesses rebuilding after the Tazlina fire in December 2020. We should have specifically mentioned that the Connecting Ties Office was also housed on the site, and was also a total loss in the fire. Kendra Harder was the recipient of proceeds from two GoFundMe accounts, one that was started by her sister and another by the Jeffries family: Rob, Colleen, and Anna Grace.