Among this city on a hill lies the business-oriented downtown area, the Canal Park nightlife and not to forget, the breathtaking overlook of Lake Superior. While these locations may be famous to Duluth, the unknown features and sentimental value of the city make up why people call it their home. Residents describe West Winona Street as family-oriented and safe, having a small-town feel to it. With a marketplace right down the road and a local residential salon on the corner, making people continue to love this neighborhood.
This week’s journey to discover Duluth within takes you along the colorful drive of West Winona Street and Woodland Avenue.
Not only does the fall season complement this neighborhood well, its sense of community makes West Winona Street a great place to be.
“We have lived here for almost 10 years. We moved in here in September of 2004,” Joelle Spanbauer said.
From residents who have lived here more than 40 years to ones that have been here less than five years, they all shed a positive light on why they love living in this part of town.
“My husband’s mother lived in that house right over there and grew up there for a while. Our house was actually her best friend’s house, so we knew the owner who actually built the house and everything, so we bought it directly from her; she was about 80 years old when she sold it,” Spanbauer said.
“(What’s) really nice, at least for people who like outdoors, is that Hartley is about two blocks away. You can walk and go in there and go for hikes and cross-country ski, so if you like outdoors, you have a great place to go do all that sort of stuff,” Spanbauer said.
Diane and Jim Pettit own the Catwalk Salon on the corner of Woodland Avenue and West Winona Street, where they’re coming up on their 14th year of business.
“We opened the salon March 31, 2001 and previous to that, I’ve been doing hair for 13 years and was either ready to either open up my own salon or rent space from someone. My husband and I found this building for sale up here on Woodland and we thought this could work,” Diane Pettit said.
Setting their standards high for a friendly atmosphere as well as a clean and comfortable environment, they explain their passion for the salon and its sentimental value to them.
“I have a wide range of clients from men, women, and children; since we’re so close to UMD and St Scholastica, we also cater to college students. Plus, being in the residential area of Woodland, we get a lot of neighborhood people as well,” Diane Pettit said.
“A lot of people like to come here, especially if they live on Woodland. They can walk here if they’d like, and it has kind of a small-town feel. I’ve noticed over the 13 years that a lot of people that live around here … that they’re loyal to the businesses in this area, so I’m pretty happy about that,” Diane Pettit said.
“We had friends who actually came up with the name (Catwalk) because we were struggling to find a name. Actually, we have the Catwalk featured down the middle of our salon here, so we kind of feature that, and then the products have the Catwalk line as well, so we carry that also,” Diane Pettit said.
With many other unknown neighborhoods just like this one, stay tuned as we continue to discover Duluth within, finding the sentimental value and history of our beloved city on a hill.