 | | Holding an old photo from the times when Clodine was small and simple, Henry Nemec said he is reminded that the store is full of many memories and this is why he is trying his hardest to keep Clodine General Store, which has been in his family for generations, from being torn down. (Staff photo by Marquita Griffin)
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| Time is really running short now as Henry Nemec fights the clock that is counting down to the ultimate fate of Clodine General Store.
For more than a year, the Texas Department of Public Transportation negotiated with Nemec concerning the front 68 feet of his property and in September TxDOT was awarded that property which will be used to expand FM 1464 from a two-lane to a four-lane road.
TxDOT spokesperson for the Houston district, Norm Wigington, said this is a $25.9 million and 7.2-mile-long construction project being handled by WW Webber LLC Contractors.
He also said the construction on FM 1464 (which includes the 68 feet of Nemec's property) will begin sometime in February and is estimated to be completed by the end of 2009.
But it is on this 68 feet of property, owned by TxDOT, that the Clodine store still rests and will be torn down unless it can be moved farther onto Nemec's remaining property.
Since the store has been in his family since the '50s, Nemec said after hearing about TxDOT's intentions, the most obvious plan of action was to move the store by TxDOT's Feb. 1 deadline, but time and circumstance did not worked in his favor.
Ryan Slater, Nemec's grandson-in-law, said because TxDOT continually changed the deadline, Nemec did not know whether or not to proceed with the move.
“He has been dealing with this for over a year and there have been several deadlines but for one reason or another it would be pushed back to a later date,” he said. “(Nemec) would be ready to move and then (TxDOT) would put the brakes on everything.”
Nemec said the bad weather was another obstacle because it prevented him from efficiently preparing the site where he wants to move the store.
“What I needed was some dry weather,” he said. “It rained at least 19 days straight this month”.
And even though it feels like doomsday is near, Nemec and his family refuse to give up on saving the store, especially since the contractor with WW Webber Construction is working with, not against, Nemec.
“We might have a little more time to get things done,” Nemec said.
And that is what he and his family are doing - getting things done while they still have the chance.
Thursday, Nemec hired a moving company to empty the store and have everything placed into a storage unit and Friday it is supposed to return to clean the carport located behind the store so it can be torn down to make room for the store.
A lot of hard work has to get done in a considerably short amount of time, but that isn't a deterrence for Nemec.
“He's still a very feisty man,” Slater said. “Even at 80, Henry is one feisty man.
While moving furniture from the store, one of the movers discovered a photograph in an old frame coated in dust and dirt. Although there was no date on the photograph, it was clear it was taken from a time when things were probably a lot less complicated.
The photograph was taken in front of the store and there was no Westpark Toll Road in the background, no line of cars, not even street lights - just a horizon filled with greenery.
Leaning against a bare counter, Nemec remained fixated on that photo for a minute or so.
“There are a lot a memories in this store,” he said. “I think a lot of people around here would hate to see it go.”
So instead of giving in to self-pity or giving up altogether, Nemec and his family are determined to fight the odds - just like the store itself.
“This store has survived a fire, a flood in 1935, hurricanes,” he said while lighting his pipe. “ And it will survive bureaucracy.”
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