GENEVA – People from all over have been making the wintry trek to Geneva to see Alex Tapia’s humongous igloo.
Recently, Tapia finished up the snowy structure in his yard at 874 E. Main St.
“It turned out great, I had so many people come from everywhere,” he said, noting the Girl Scouts even paid a visit.
“They loved it,” he said. “The parents were here too, and they loved it.”
His visitors also included some women from Conneaut.
“They came out just for this,” he said. “They loved it. They sent me a letter that said, ‘amazing,’ and a $20 bill was in it.”
The igloo features a long tunnel seven feet tall that winds its way to the igloo inside. The roof on the igloo reaches 11 feet into the air.
As promised, Tapia has decorated the igloo inside with a fake ficus tree, an electric lamp, a coffee table and benches. Multi-colored Christmas lights are strung along the wall of the tunnel. There’s even a neon “Open” sign outside the igloo.
“It looks good, it looks real good,” Tapia, who has been building igloos for 11 years, said. Made with 600 50-pound blocks of snow, this igloo is his biggest yet.
On Tuesday, Feb. 3, three brothers, Jack Flynn from Summit County and Tom and Jimmy Flynn from Cuyahoga County sat inside the igloo with Tapia.
Jimmy, who saw an article about the igloo online, recalled how he and his brother Tom had built a snow fort when they were youngsters.
He told his brother about it, and Tom said he would like to go out and see the igloo.
“It’s phenomenal,” Jimmy said. “And the constructor here is more than nice.”
Tom was impressed by Tapia’s skill level.
“It’s fantastic,” he said.
Jack was also impressed, way beyond his expectations.
He appreciated the size of the igloo, the height of the ceiling and the skill of the design.
Tapia said he plans to have the igloo open for Geneva Winterfest, provided the weather cooperates. People can stop by in the daytime. At night, it’s open when the neon “open” sign is lit.
