Commercial Locksmith in Green Bay, WI

Older commercial blocks in West Green Bay

The Broadway-Dousman Historic District is centered on the corner of North Broadway and Dousman Street and reaches about half a block each way. Its 1998 National Register form ties it to the historic Fort Howard/West Green Bay commercial district (Fort Howard is also one of the city's neighborhood associations) and counts 15 buildings, most of them two- and three-story blocks with two or more storefronts. Among them is the 1873 Albert Flatten Wholesale Produce building at 406-408 Dousman, then described as the city's only extant Gothic Revival commercial building.

Blocks like these raise particular lock questions:

• Several businesses in one structure. Each storefront has its own entry, and a rear door, basement or stair may be shared. Know which doors your lease covers before ordering work.
• Renovated fronts. According to the form, most of the contributing buildings had already had their storefronts renovated. A rebuilt aluminum-and-glass front usually takes a narrow-stile lock and cylinder, hardware that differs from an older wood door in the same building.
• Upstairs entries. The form records that at the 1925 Fort Howard Hotel, 231-233 North Broadway, a steel security door had taken the place of the central door to the upper-floor rooms. A door serving upper floors is often keyed for more people than any one shop door, so its keys spread widely.

Turnover and key control

Keys change hands when a tenant leaves, a manager changes or staff turn over. To keep track of them:

1. Keep a written list of who holds each key, signed out and signed back in.
2. Rekey or change cylinders when a tenant leaves or a key holder departs without returning a key.
3. Consider a master key system, so the owner carries one key for every door while each tenant's key opens only its own space.
4. Use a restricted keyway where copies should not be cut at a hardware counter.

What to send

• The building address and which storefront or upstairs door needs work
• Whether you own the building or lease a space, and who else must approve changes
• The door type: aluminum and glass, wood, or steel
• How many keys are out and whether any were not returned

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