Red Tag Halts Renovations at Old Vet’s Hall

When it’s done, the old Veterans Memorial Hall building across the street from Womens Improvement Club Park will be an events center in Downtown Dixon that Dixonites can use for a myriad of events – everything from wedding receptions to retirement dinners.

But before the building can open its doors, which owners Bud and Cherie Fanning are hoping to do in time for the Dixon May Fair, they will need to lift the red tag that the City of Dixon placed on the building a little over a week ago.

A red tag on a building prevents any construction or renovation from happening at the location until the proper permits can be acquired said David Dowswell, the city’s community development director.

“It’s essentially a legal process that tells the person that’s doing the work that they need a permit,” Dowswell said. “It designed to stop any further work from taking place until (the permits are acquired). If they continue to ignore the permit, the city attorney can take action. It’s one of the steps in the process.”

Dowswell said the Fannings were doing both demolition and construction work inside the old Vet’s Hall without the required permits.

“We had to ask them on a couple of occasions to stop working,” Dowswell said.

“I guess we went a little farther than we should have,” said Cherie Fanning, who with her husband Bud Fanning owns Bud’s Pub and Grill in Dixon. The couple purchased the old Vet’s Hall building last year.

Cherie Fanning said that they are in the process of working alongside the city as well as the county’s health department and the Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District to attain the proper permits and said she hopes to have the building opened in time for the May Fair this year.

“It’s going to be a great events center,” Fanning said. “We are fixing it up. The bathrooms are going to be gutted because they have to be ADA compliant.”

In addition, the old building has the presence of asbestos and led paint, Dowswell said, which requires the Fannings to work with the Yolo-Solano Air Quality District to acquire a special permit.

“There are procedures that you have to follow with that material … (contract) firms that are certified to do that and that the material  … be disposed of properly,” Dowswell said. “It may have to go through a special process.”

Fanning said that so far, she has received several calls from community members looking to rent the events center for various functions. She said if everything goes according to plan, they will have it ready by May.