photo by Steve Block

Galen Youngfrantz moves some dirt as part of the construction at Crystal Springs RV Park along Interstate 35 near Ellendale.

RV park along I-35 is just about ready

By Steve Block | Albert Lea Tribune

Published Monday, June 15, 2009

ELLENDALE — A new attraction for owners of recreational vehicles is coming to life just east of Interstate 35 near Ellendale. Crystal Springs RV Park plans to open for business late this month, according to co-owner Galen Youngkrantz.

“We hope to cater to RV owners from the Twin Cities area who can leave their RV here all summer, come down after the workweek is over, and enjoy this area, returning to the RV park in the evening.This way they can avoid multiple trips in and out of city traffic,” Youngkrantz said.

RV owners expect to have the amenities of life at their fingertips, and Crystal Springs RV Park plans to oblige. Each of the 20-by-65-foot slabs will have electrical, water and sewer hookups available. Wireless Internet and cable TV are offered. The lots will average 40 by 80 feet, and each lot will have a storage shed and be professionally landscaped.

Plans call for a clubhouse equipped with a banquet room and an exercise room and a second office building featuring a store filled with supplies and souvenirs. A former gravel pit has been stocked with sunfish and crappies, and a boat landing for non-motorized watercraft will add to the outdoor ambiance of the new park.

While the park will open with 10 developed RV slabs, Steele County has granted permits for up to 115 slabs, according to Youngkrantz. The park is a family-owned venture involving Youngkrantz, his wife, Patricia, and their son and daughter-in-law, Kurt and Jane Youngkrantz, all of Rochester.

They purchased the property four years ago and began working grounds last summer. Thousands of yards of dirt and gravel have been trucked to the site, which, when completed, will have 1 1/2 miles of paved roads linking the park’s RV slabs north and south of the tree-lined pond. Most of the early work involved installing underground pipes and cables and building a roadbed.

The first concrete slabs are being installed now, in preparation for the camp’s opening, said Youngkrantz. The park’s owners do much of the preparation work themselves. The first building at the worksite doubles as an office and storage shed for equipment.

The recent economic downturn has hurt sales of new RVs but Youngkrantz said he expects to attract a steady customer base at the new RV park. Many RV owners tend to be older and more affluent, better able to handle the expenses involved in owning one of the big rolling homes. Youngkrantz and his wife were RV owners for 46 years and developed an understanding of the culture and society of their fellow RV owners.

“It’s a good way of getting away from it all and spending time with people of common interests. It’s shaping up to be a good summer. I think people will continue to travel, they just won’t travel as far from home. They will still be going,” Youngkrantz said.

The park’s owners plan to develop the park as demand increases and as RV owners become aware of the new camping location. They hope to complete the project within two years. Promotion of the new park has begun with a company Web site: www.crystalspringsrvpark.com, with more than 400 people signing up for the company’s mailing list thus far. Publicity will feature stories and advertising in national RV magazines, such as Woodall’s and Trailer Life. Brightly colored signage is visible from Interstate 35, advertising the new park to motorists.

Sites will be available for fifth-wheel campers as well as RVs. The park also hopes to attract overnight RV owners, many of them owners of smaller vehicles. These potential customers tend to be young couples with children, looking for weekend adventure.

“The younger folks seem to enjoy RV travel as much as ever,” Youngkrantz said, as he climbed back on his tractor last week and got back to work.

---

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE THIS STORY?

---