It's an exciting time for the Benroth family as they officially reopen one of their four car wash locations.
Once known as 4 Seasons Car Wash, the Bellefontaine Avenue Bruster's Car Wash is ready for business. This opening comes months after an arsonist set the original building in that location on fire back in April, but co-owner Kyle Benroth says that while the situation has been tough, it wasn't enough to keep them down forever.
"It was traumatic at times, and stressful, absolutely; whoever did this certainly changed our lives quite a bit, but we’re just hopeful that we can come out strong again and get back on the right track, and show whoever did this that we’re here to stay, whether they wanted us here or not, for whatever reason," said Benroth.
Benroth says that the community has also played a big part in helping them get back on their feet. "The business was back almost instantaneously, seeing everyone re-sign up for the unlimited accounts, those were things that we hadn't expected," Benroth said. "We’re very, very grateful for the community and appreciate them."
But while the family is celebrating their new location, the investigation on the arson continues on. The Lima Police Department has taken over for the investigation and is now considering looking to social media to possibly find some answers on who committed the crime.
"We're going to ask for the public's assistance and using social media to maybe give us those tips that the fire department had before," said Det. Steve Stechschulte with the Lima Police Department. "We have talked to a couple of people that were involved, or at least had knowledge of it, and we’re looking at those avenues as well right now. Even though we’ve had it for a couple months, it’s still kind of new into the investigative process."
