City Times Staff

The building that once housed Steel Nightclub, seen here in 2010, has a new owner with a divine mission.

The nightclub has been purchased by Divine Word Evangelical Lutheran Church in Plover, which will revert the building into downtown campus ministry. The sale of $210K property was complete last December.

Steel Nightclub operated for three years, closing in Jan. of 2011 after the city declared it to the abandoned. Club owners at the time told the city they had closed temporarily to renovate the property as a pool hall. But no plans were presented to the city, and council members worried after 16 months of non-operation the business would never bounce back.

Former Police Chief Kevin Ruder had also told city leaders the owners had allowed the property to become a haven for gang violence and drug activity.

The building was formerly home to Friends of Clark Place, which featured live local music, and before that it was the American Legion Hall, which was popular for its Friday night fish fry and wedding banquet space.

The church hopes to open the new location at 1009 Clark St., by summer.