Marilyn Cooper stood on the southeast corner of Sherman Avenue and Second Street and watched the demolition of the Johnston Building on Tuesday afternoon. 

She remembered it in its better days. 

“There used to be a beauty shop right there,” she said, pointing across the street to the ground level. “I used to go and get my hair done.” 

Cooper has lived in Coeur d’Alene since the 1960s, when Ramsey Road was dirt. She has watched the city’s transformation. Some for better, some not so much.  

“I’m happy with what’s going to take place here, but it’s hard to see some of the good memories fade away,” she said. “Changes are happening awfully fast.” 

Some of the screens that covered the building’s windows were on the ground. Old, worn, light fixtures some 15 feet above the sidewalk remained attached to the outside wall. 

“The light fixtures are certainly nice, but I guess they’ll be coming down,” she said. 

Cooper paused as the excavator’s massive yellow paw nudged a third-floor wall, sending bricks, glass, wood and metal spiraling to the ground. The debris kicked up a cloud of dust as it crushed a section of fencing around the property. 

“I feel like I got the best years of Coeur d’Alene,” she said. 

People stopped by throughout the day to watch the early stages of bringing down the 1905 Johnston Building, which is being torn down to make room for the 15-story Sherman Tower, expected to be completed in 2027 by the Hagadone Corp. 

Kids, cyclists and dog walkers took up posts on benches and grass while looking on. Others stood, some coming out from Hudson’s Hamburgers to witness history. 

Second Street between Sherman and Lakeside Avenue was blocked to traffic, and Sherman was restricted to one lane as vehicles were directed through the work zone.

Jeff Conners was among those looking up as the excavator owned by Elder Demolition went about its business. 

“It makes sense,” he said.  

Coeur d’Alene is becoming even more popular and crowded as people hear about it, said Conners, who moved here six years ago.  

“It’s only natural they would need to make room for more guests. We get a lot of tourists every year,” he said. 

Despite the growth, Conners loves Coeur d’Alene. 

“I can’t think of another place I’d rather live,” he said. 

Ann Johnston, a member of the Johnston family, shared memories of the building as she watched pieces of it come down. 

“Time marches on, but it’s sad for the family,” she said. 

The Johnston Building had been in the family since Ivan Johnston bought it in the late 1940s and later passed it on to his sons, Don and Bob, along with other downtown properties. The Hagadone Corp. bought it in 1999.

Ann said family members were usually the janitors of the building, herself included. She recalled when Don asked her if she wanted a job. 

“I answered yes, not knowing it was the janitor job,” she said, smiling. 

From 1987 to 1990, she cleaned the hallways, stairwells and restrooms. 

“I used to complain about it quite a bit,” she said, chuckling. “But I feel a close connection to the building. It’s an amazing legacy for the family."  

She was disappointed there would no longer be a building in town with the Johnston name. 

“It feels almost like being erased a little bit,” Ann Johnston said. 

She said she planned to retrieve a few of the bricks as keepsakes before they were hauled away. 

“Maybe a paperweight,” she said. 

John Swallow, who was presented with the city's Heart of History award last year, looked on with son Travis.  

He was leading the efforts to save two vault doors in the building that dated back to its early days as a bank. The building later was home to apartments, businesses and office spaces. 

Swallow said they have retrieved some decorations and smaller, inner doors, and will get the 2,500-pound vault doors before the building is leveled.

“I have mixed emotions all the way around,” he said. 

The building would have a great candidate to preserve, Swallow said, but had been remodeled so much over the years the original interior was a thing of the past.

“She was really chopped up in there. There wasn’t a whole lot of cool left,” he said. 

It was cool enough for the children of Tanden Launder. 

Ronx, Lux and Zed sat on the grass at Second and Sherman, mesmerized by the massive dinosaur-like creature operated by one man. 

“Zed loves excavators. It's his favorite thing," Tanden Launder said. "He’s skipping a nap for this. He thinks it’s the best thing ever.” 

    Jeff Conners watches the demolition of the Johnston Building on Tuesday.
  

    An excavator is ready to bite into the Johnston Building on Tuesday.
  

    Ronx, Lux and Zed Launder watch the demolition of the Johnston Building on Tuesday.
  

    Lanterns hang on the exterior walls of the Johnston Building on Tuesday.
  

    Marilyn Cooper watches as the Johnston Building in downtown Coeur d'Alene is demolished Tuesday.