WOODBURY, Minn. – A Woodbury real estate developer has decided to rewrite the ending of a story he’s followed for years.
On Friday, Tim Thone will be closing the deal to buy the Annandale home formerly owned by confessed Jacob Wetterling killer Danny Heinrich.
Thone said he decided to buy the property “six seconds” after he and his wife, Michele, heard the latest news reports regarding the community’s desire to purchase and demolish the home.
“I said to myself and Michele, I said, ‘I’m going to buy that house if it’s still available, and I’m going to tear that house down. And we’re going to give that to our kids for Christmas,” Thone said, referring to his four adult children – three sons and one daughter.
For Thone, it was an “easy” decision to make after following the Jacob Wetterling story these last 27 years.
“I grew up like Jacob. I always felt like I was like Jacob,” Thone said from his Woodbury home on Tuesday, adding that he also felt connected to the Wetterlings as a father.
“Your life changed, and I think a lot of Minnesotans changed for those years... It profoundly affected the way we raised our children for all those years,” he said, referring to the 1989 abduction of Wetterling near his home in rural St. Joseph, Minn.
NEXT STEPS
The home currently sits vacant while Heinrich serves a 20-year prison sentence on child pornography charges. Many neighbors began a petition, which garnered 250 signatures, asking the city to ensure something positive is done with the property.
RELATED: City ponders options for Heinrich's home
The city of Annandale tried to purchase the home three times, including twice during online auctions, but were never successful in acquiring the property. The mortgage holder, JPMorgan Chase, purchased it for $62,400 on a sheriff’s sale back in May, according to Wright County records. Thone said he will be buying the home for nearly $60,000, all assessments and fees included.
On Tuesday, Thone met with Annandale city officials to communicate his desires for the land. He plans to hand over the property to the city with only a couple conditions: neither he nor the previous owner, whom Thone refers to as “the predator,” can be recognized on the site.
“We don’t want to memorialize at all the predator’s house, where the predator lived. As far as I’m concerned, you can change the street name,” Thone said.
“They didn’t pick the next-door neighbor. And the city can do the right thing, whatever that is,” he said, adding, “I said, ‘Why don’t you put together a group of homeowners that live in the area… Why don’t you put your heads together and decide what you do with it, open space, or a park, or whatever.”
Thone – who owns Thone Development LLC and whose career includes building nearly 500 homes in the Woodbury area – is not acting alone.
Thone is quick to reference his industry colleagues who are also contributing to the donation.
Once Thone officially owns the property, Red Pine Industries will inspect the home to ensure it’s free from hazardous material before work begins to demolish it on Dec. 23.
Attorney Steve Yoch at Felhaber Larson has also assisted in the project, pro bono. And DSM Excavating of Hastings has agreed to donate their time and labor in the actual demolition.
Thone said Gov. Mark Dayton’s office, through the Department of Commerce, played a “crucial role” in getting the home sale approved before Christmas.
PAYING IT FORWARD
But Thone's hope is the giving doesn't end there. He asks anyone who is moved by his decision to purchase the home consider making a donation of their own to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center.
"So they can continue their work to help many families," he said about the center dedicated to preventing the exploitation of children.
Those who wish to donate to the JWRC, can do so here: http://www.gundersenhealth.org/ncptc/jacob-wetterling-resource-center/
APPROVED BY WETTERLINGS
And that's what matters to Thone -- the Wetterling family and the desire to make a difference for them. On Monday, Thone talked with Patty Wetterling by phone.
“The first thing I said was I was sorry,” Thone said about conveying his sympathies for the Wetterlings’ loss.
“It was one parent talking to another parent, but we’re on opposite ends, because I haven’t had the loss. So it’s difficult,” he said.
Wetterling also told KARE 11’s Karla Hult, “I am thrilled that this house will (be) taken down. What a generous gift of healing during this holiday season!”
LIFE IMITATING ART
But Thone also knew he needed to do it. After seeing the latest news story on the small screen, he was reminded of a classic picture on the big screen.
“It just kind of clicked when Mrs. Wetterling said that we just want to get rid of the memory. And I remembered this scene in Forrest Gump,” he said, referring to when the central Tom Hanks character demolished the home of his late wife who’d been abused as a child.
“I’m going to get rid of that memory,” Thone said.
