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 A Phoenix rises from the ashes,
Central Illinois Ag Grand Opening set for Saturday
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[July 31, 2015]
LINCOLN
- On June 30, 2013 the unthinkable happened in the small community
of Atlanta, one of its largest businesses was severely damaged by
fire.
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 The fire that started on a Sunday morning, destroyed much of the
main business building of Central Illinois Ag, a farm equipment
dealership.
However, while it may have been a hindrance to the business on a
temporary basis, it was not going to hold back the popular and over
100-year-old business from doing business as usual. According to the
owners, the Schmidt family, by mid-week they had a plan. Temporary
portable units would be brought in for the sales staff, other areas
of the dealership that were not badly damaged would be re-purposed,
and the daily business of serving Logan County farmers would
continue.
It was also immediately apparent to the family that they would
rebuild, and like the phoenix, they would rise from the ashes bigger
and better than ever.
Central Illinois Ag began its history in Logan County as a
blacksmith shop in Atlanta in 1898. In 1926 the shop morphed into a
farm equipment dealership and has continued to grow since then. To
date, in addition to Atlanta the company has three dealerships --
Clinton, Farmer City and Mason City. All total, it employees almost
100 people.
 The family business is owned and operated by the fourth and fifth
generation father and son team, Steve and Michael Schmidt. The
business has been a member of the Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of
Commerce for over 20 years, and the family is very involved in the
Atlanta community.
In the spirit of positive thinking following the 2013 fire, Michael
Schmidt told LDN that he saw the loss as an opportunity to bring
their Atlanta facility into the 21st Century. The building loss
measured only 22,000 square feet, the new building is more than
two-and-a-half times bigger at 57,000 square feet. The redesign of
the facility accommodates today’s larger equipment with taller and
wider doors, and also provides larger work areas for service staff.
In the fall of 2013, Schmidt also shared with LDN that the new
building would be a first of its kind for any Case-IH dealership.
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The new design incorporates geothermal heating, and the mechanic or shop areas
are air conditioned, making it more tolerable for employees to do their jobs.
This Saturday the dealership will celebrate the completion of their new Atlanta
facility. It’s going to be a complete blow-out as the Schmidt family is going to
be pulling out all the stops to celebrate. The day is set to begin at 2 p.m.
with a Grand Opening. Staff and owners will be on hand to welcome visitors,
provide tours of the new facility and talk about how it is going to better serve
the CIA customers.
At 5 p.m. CIA will provide a free meal to the first 1,000 attendees, and at 7
p.m. they will offer a free concert open to all with the well-known Country
Music band Brushville being the main attraction.
The public is invited to come out and be a part of the celebration, whether for
an hour or the day, all will be welcomed by the Schmidt’s.
[Nila Smith]
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