As a child, Tyler Light and his friends were goofing around on the Sutliff Bridge during a thunderstorm. Joanne Coon, then-owner of Baxa’s Sutliff Store & Tavern disciplined the kids. Light, who now owns Baxa’s, recalls his childhood, and that of his kids, growing up around the family-like community of the tavern owners, staff, and customers.
“I’ve told that story several different times over, you know, and I still giggle about it,” said 40-year-old Light. “Part of the history of the area is taking care of each other and being there for each other.”
To the Sutliff community, about five miles north of Solon, Baxa’s is more than just a restaurant-tavern.
Dating back to the 1930s, it’s been a generational gathering spot, whether customers come by to talk about the daily neighborhood gossip or to grab a beer by the bridge. Erin Light, Tyler’s wife and tavern co-owner, also grew up down the street from Baxa’s. Their three daughters now play around the tavern, catching up with regulars and making their own memories as mom and dad work behind the counter. The couple hopes to keep the business in the family for coming generations.
Although the preceding owners were not related to the Lights, Tyler traced his ancestry back to owners from a different side of the family decades before he was born.
Just a mile south of Baxa’s lives Randy Brannaman. He was two when he first came to Baxa’s. The 74-year-old is still a loyal customer, saying Baxa’s is still part of his daily routine. For over seven decades, weekend band performances, card tournaments, and Brannaman’s go-to chicken wings and pork tenderloin orders have upheld Baxa’s integration into his life.
“The core people that are around here, like the people that come every day, they’re like family. I mean, they’re basically people that live around here or have been around here for years and years,” said Brannaman.
He referred to Baxa’s as the home base of Sutliff, where his neighbors often call to get ahold of each other or offer help when needed.
“If anybody needs something, they could always call the store. And whoever is here can always get a hold of one of us, or somebody that’s in the area that they know can help if they need some help down here, or if there’s something going on, and actually the store needs help to put it on, we’ll jump right in,” Brannaman said.
The dollar bills
When first walking into Baxa’s, new customers are immediately caught by the ceilings full of hanging dollar bills. Like the tavern itself, the hanging bills come with a story of their own.
In the 1970s, two women from the east coast were on a cross-country trip when they stumbled upon Baxa’s on their way to California and Washington. Before they continued their quest to the west, they insisted on stopping back at Baxa’s on their way back home. To make their mark, the two women placed quarters in a sandwich bag and pinned it to ceiling.
“Well, the quarters came down. Dollar bills started going up, and that became the tradition since the 70s, where people would come in and they would mark $1 bills, write their name on it,” said Tyler.
The bridge
Directly across from Baxa’s sits Sutliff Bridge, standing over Cedar River. Although it is now exclusively used as a pedestrian bridge, Brannaman recalls his childhood of driving across the iron truss spans. A 1979 state report deemed the old bridge dangerous due to excessive modern vehicle use and closing the bridge. In 1983, a separate bridge, the Cilek Bridge, was built to redirect vehicular traffic.
A year later, Brannaman and other Sutliff residents created the non-profit Sutliff Bridge Authority (SBA) to ensure the continued preservation of their beloved bridge, which joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.
Brannaman served a director of SBA for 20 years and as president for 14. During his tenure, SBA argued their case for rebuilding Sutliff Bridge and the group hosted annual fundraisers to raise over $100,000 after the old structure fell into the river during the 2008 flood.
“So, it’s basically, we worked our butts off, if you want to call it, to get it back and keep it preserved,” Brannaman said.
The group hosted several fundraisers each year including a dance in Solon and plank selling to nearby communities.
The group also established a contribution fund for passionate locals to continue financially backing the bridge’s repairs.
The Johnson County Board of Supervisors voted in 2010 to use $1.7 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to restore the bridge, the Daily Iowan reported. The span reopened as a foot bridge in 2012. The Community Foundation of Johnson County uses two endowment funds to finance bridge maintenance and improvements to the public destination.
The food
Although known for its beers, Baxa’s maintains its family-orientation through its comfort food offerings. The tavern’s in-house hand-cut, hand-bread tenderloin is on Tyler’s “must try” list for new customers, while Erin suggests the cheeseburger as the juiciest in town.
“It doesn’t hurt either that we’re cooking on the same flat top that was in there since like ‘81 or something like that. So, it’s well seasoned, it adds that extra flavor to it,” joked Tyler.
For customers wanting to try something new, Tyler recommends the quarter-inch fried bologna sandwich, featuring lettuce, tomato, and mayo.
For those who do not eat meat, the tavern also offers black bean burgers and a variety of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, and more.
When browsing the menu online, customers are given a taste of community felt in the restaurant: the menu opens to a family picture of the Lights.
In a time of small-town dive bars around the nation dying out, Tyler is proud of the continued legacy of Baxa’s as a pillar of community and tradition in Sutliff.
Allisa Pandit is a student in the UI Community News class.