Iconic Minnesota Apple Orchard Suddenly Closes it’s Doors
It's officially apple-picking season in Minnesota. We have so many orchards we can visit in Minnesota, but there's one that people would travel from all over to visit. Sadly, that iconic apple orchard has suddenly closed its doors.
Before we get to that, did you see that Sekapp Orchard in Rochester has a new, delicious addition? They have a bakery truck now and the goodies look amazing.
READ MORE: Delicious New Additions to Sekapp Orchard
Emma Krumbee's Orchard Closes Suddenly
The apple orchard that closed suddenly is Emma Krumbee's in Belle Plaine. Emma Krumbee's is a well-known name and, like I said earlier, people traveled from all over to visit their apple orchard.
They owned the apple orchard, hotel, huge general store, and restaurant. The restaurant closed last August. I'm not sure how long the hotel and general store were around.
But now the iconic apple orchard is no more. And it seems a little sudden. There's nothing on their Facebook announcing the closure but they also haven't posted anything since last season. When I go to their website it says it's suspended.
There are also reports that there's a sign outside of the orchard that says 'Closed. Thanks for 43 years!' but I haven't been able to find any pictures of the sign.
So what happened?
It sounds like it's going to become the new home of Belle Plaine's police department. Bring Me the News writes that in August the city council "voted unanimously to move forward with a $1.85 million deal to buy the 15,000-square-foot former Emma Krumbees General Store and adjacent apple orchard, totaling roughly 25 acres".
I'm really sad to see a Minnesota staple be taken away and replaced by a police department. It sounds like they'll be using the existing building as the new department which is much better than building a new one but still.