Work is underway to demolish the former Zandy’s building in Great Falls. The restaurant, considered by many to be a Great Falls icon, has been closed for more than a decade.
On Monday, contractor Zach Shumaker was working to get the building ready for demolition. He said the asbestos has to be abated and the utilities disconnected and then the building can come down.
He anticipated having the building demolished in about a week. “Really shouldn’t take very long at all to get it down, then hauling it out and everything, a few days,” said Shumaker. “Pretty much just push the walls in, let it drop to the ground safely, and bunch it up and get it hauled out.”
As news of the impending demolition spread over the last few days, some neighborhood and nostalgia pages on Facebook have been flooded with people sharing their memories of Zandy's, including it being a regular stop on the weekend "cruise" decades ago.
With fond memories of going to the restaurant, tearing it down is bittersweet, Shumaker said: “I used to come down here all the time as a kid. It’s an honor, I guess, to get to tear something like this down."
The Zandy's in Great Falls initially began life as part of the Sandy's chain (which eventually was taken over by Hardee's), but changed to Zandy's in the 1970s. A revival of the Zandy's location and name in Great Falls was attempted in 2009 with a new manager and crew, but it did not last very long.
What will become of the property once the restaurant is gone is not yet known; the lot is currently for sale for $199,000 (source). We will update you if we find out.
