Northwest Indiana Discussion

When we had these two establishments on Hohma av. We had no problems except when a few marchers complained about the adult store.
That new night club Aquevor, which is at the same location of those two business places, has been nothing but problems since the first night it opened. Saturday night it was a free for all. Something like 20 cops were called to calm things down. Somebody said they have had over 100 police calls to the place. How this dump opened at that location in the first place should be investigated. It's very near the Charter School. That should have been enough reason to deny them a liquor license.
Were some private deals made?

Your absolutely correct flash, a book store would have less drama and adverse affect than posters of half naked women posted on its store front right next to Tom's school.

Good day JCMT... I have come to the conclusion that the folks of Hammond just don't care about their surroundings. They live here but never demand that the city get's cleaned up. Many posters have pointed out problems with the city and they are ignored. I know they read this board, because I have heard city workers mention items they have read here. Case in point. Have they even forced anyone to clean up some of these dumps you have photo's posted on this web site. Have they even cleaned up the dumps along Summer st. west of Indianapolis. No not one time. They can't understand that thousands of motorist are using Summer as a detour because the 9 span bridge is out. How many out of towners use Indy Blvd, not only to get to the boats, but as a way to get to Chicago. Driving down Summer they get an eye full of Hammond with the weads junk cars trailers stacked upon trailers and have been this way for years. Where is that little jerk that is for code enforcement He goes around causing problems for business people that want to remodel, so where is he on this junk pile problem. They brag about this Potash Company coming to town, they sit right in the center of this decaying part of town. It's a wonder why they haven't complained already.

Stop the presses! The folks of Hammond just don't care about their surroundings! Awesome job, Scoop! You got the story, only twenty-some years too late.

There are some of us who care, but our complaints tend to fall on deaf ears, most of the time.

I think it was around the late 70's or early 80's that the Army Navy store moved to 165th Street and closed about 4 to 5 years ago.
If Obama keeps his word and brings the soldiers home, We will have enough army surplus to open them up again.
For my comment about people don't care in Hammond, that one poster remarked about. For a period of time I thought the elected one's would do something. Like JCMT posts, "It's not getting better" I have heard many times , it would be better to bulldoze Gary into Lake Michigan and start over. Why stop at Cline avenue? O'h I'm sorry. I forgot they are reviving Hammond's downtown. I hope the start wasn't the Aquivor.

The Army Navy closed either in the VERY late 1980s or in 1990 or 1991. They moved and the building got bull dozed in order to make way for the overpass. They moved before the Indiana Hotel came down. I'm pretty sure the bridge was finished in 1992.

The Army Navy never had the business on 165th and the owner died. That left the business to be run by his wife and kids and the wife reached a point where she was getting older. They pulled the plug.

The Downtown revival has been a disaster for 40 years. McDermott Sr, Dedelow, and McDermotto Jr all had opportunities that could have sustained the area and allowed it to thrive. In many cases it's been the FBC and St Margaret's that blocked development. But I think all have shown a tremendous lack of vision and now it's pretty much gone and done.

The Aquavor situation is an interesting one, police and gang problems aside. I think the guy bit off more than he could chew. He's not a dumb guy (from his other business successes), but he entered categories he had no experience in. Nightclub? Then he never finished the sports bar?

I've always said that Downtown needed "critical mass" to succeed as a entertainment destination. You need 4 ...5 ...6 restaurants plus the Towle Theater, plus another couple draws. Who has been also strangely silent is Mr Garcia and his planned Restaurant in the Woolworth building. I haven't been past it lately,but supposedly he was already working in there 2 years ago but I saw now progress. The Aquavor situation must give him serious pause.

The Army Navy Surplus Store was closer to Saint Joes, and not torn down for the overpass. Kwikee Snack, Civic Theater, and the Surplus Store were torn down for Saint Margarets parking.

Tiger, you're have a good remembrance of many things Hammond, but you're mistaken about Army/Navy. It was at located at the southwest corner of Hohman and State. If it wasn't torn down for the bridge, it got buried by it's back fill-- Yes, it was torn down for the bridge.

It was never the same once they moved, the new venue was was too sterile and well lit.

It never had half the charm or quirk of the original location, or the bizarre inventory.

I remember tables full if pile carpeting stamped into sizes to serve as combat boot shoe liners, misprinted t-shirts, batons, actual WWII helmets, ponchos, howitzer shell casings you could repurpose as umbrella stands, gas masks, and every conceivable tchotchke you could imagine in the glass display cases.

I'll say this...those are the fondest memories I ever had of Hammond...that and Woodmar Records. Back in the days when they put it on wax.

I found a new place in Midlothian, although it has a lot of stuff, in does NOT begin to measure up to the Hohmann Ave. location.

Flying Tigers Army Navy Surplus
14812 South Cicero Ave.,
Oak Forest, IL 60452;
phone 708-535-9921

I swear it was closer to Waynes Trick Shop.

Umm that would be a NO! The Army Navy was on the corner of Hohman and State in the same block that had the Parthenon and the Walgreens until it moved to Sibley. The Walgreens and the Parthenon was torn down first in the early 1980's before the Army Navy went ....

The Army Navy store was located on State at Homan in the southwest corner. It was the J C Penny store. Before the Army store moved in.
The idiots were tearing down so many buildings at that time you couldn't keep track. Those in that area went down for the railroad overpass.
But they wrecked buildings that were still in good shape. Including the old courthouse. They said it was falling down, but they wrecked 3 cranes trying to bring it down. The county boys made the profit from that job and didn't cut in the city bigwigs and they had a small feud for some time.