Although closed for the last two-years, there remains a strong pulse at the Duer Gym, the building that stands at 402 Williams Street on Marinette’s West Side. Built in 1930, it has served as a recreational location since its inception for youth and adult programs and a voting site for voting residents in that ward. However, the need for the facility is being questioned because of the Community REC Center, which can offer many of the same programs traditionally offered at the Duer Gym. Marinette Mayor Steve Genisot says, “right now and a prior action by the city council closed the building and that we weren’t going to run programs there.”

Genisot says, “this has been a building that’s been a part of the city’s history. At some point, the cost to renovate and to keep it open became more than the city was willing to continue to do.”

The building’s namesake memorialized Richard N. Duer, a lieutenant killed in action while serving as a bombardier aboard a B-24 bomber during World War II. He was just 20 years old. The Duer Gym Open House is being held tonight from 5pm to 8pm.