All Good Things Must End, Including Our Laundromat
###SUDS Laundromat and Propane Service shuts down Jan. 6. Gale and I don't know what will become of the
facility. That's up to the landlord. We opened SUDS on June 7, 2009 in leased quarters behind Twister Creek
Restaurant. Things were very busy in June and July, but business began to drop off in August. Like many
local businesses, we suffered in late summer from the loss of morning shuttles from the big lodge on the hill.
As the summer crowds thinned, many of our regular customers gravitated to the pleasant surroundings of the
Talkeetna Roadhouse, where showers have full bathrooms, the washing machines are a little cheaper and
there's TV, a computer and room to spread out. Others found winter quarters with such facilities, or went to
Trapper Creek's tidy facility. (SUDS is a very small place, and when Twister Creek is closed there is no
restroom facility. It's main virtue is proximity to downtown, as well as it's Achilles heel, due to tight parking.)
By October we were making just $32 a day on average, and that dropped steadily for the next few months.
Unfortunately, we needed to make at least $60 a day to cover rent and utilities. In late October the landlord
asked us to vacate so he could expand the brewery. While we tried to hang on, as our lease allowed, it became
clear by early December that things were not going to pick up. Without a second working shower (shower #2 is
pretty spiffy, but broken) there was really no chance to compete for the winter shower business. Then propane
costs went up. We're quitting while we're behind. After Jan. 6 the places to go locally for laundry are the
Roadhouse, Camp Caswell and the Trapper Creek Store.
### My wife, Gale, and I started the Alaska Pioneer Press  (akpioneerpress.com) to provide up-to-date local
news, briefs and club and entertainment news. We thank our readers and advertisers for their tremendous
support over these past two years. Please send club announcements, births, weddings and anniversaries as
well as story ideas to editor@akpioneerpress.com.
For a list of businesses that carry our publication click here.
John R. Moses, Editor and Publisher
- 30-
Afternoons are the slowest time at SUDS.
Call 355-1904 for information or CLICK HERE.
We're right behind  Twister Creek Restaurant on Main
Street. Propane service has ceased.