Owner Randy Schiewe is excited about reopening the remodeled Humble's service station at Campbell and Cedar streets in Baker City. The business, which Schiewe bought about four years ago, will include an ExtraMile convenience store. (Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald)

Randy Schiewe was so impressed by Bill Emery’s Baker City gas station, Humble’s, that Schiewe wanted to buy it.

And when Emery retired about four years ago, Schiewe did.

“Bill started an amazing business,” Schiewe said on Tuesday, June 10. “I’ve been buying gas there since 1994. I thought it was awesome. When it went up for sale I jumped on it.”

Schiewe, 55, a former Baker City Council member, strived to retain the character that he found so compelling as a customer at Humble’s, a fixture on the north side of Campbell Street just east of Cedar Street.

That includes full service — pumping gas, cleaning bug-splattered windshields.

And most important, he said — chatting with customers.

“I like to talk to people,” Schiewe said.

Since buying Humble’s, he said he has talked with many customers who always stop there to fuel up while traveling because they appreciate the old-fashioned service that Emery offered.

Last year, during a routine inspection by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, Schiewe said he was told that he likely would need to replace the underground fuel tanks at Humble’s within 10 years.

He said it’s not clear when the tanks were installed. A sealant, designed to prevent leaks, was applied to the tanks’ interiors in 1998, Schiewe said.

At that point he decided to replace the tanks and to remodel the car wash at Humble’s into a convenience store.

Schiewe closed the business in September 2024.

He said his original goal was to reopen in January.

But Schiewe said he didn’t expect the regulatory process through DEQ would take as much time as it has.

“Hiccups every time we turn around,” he said. “It was a lot more than what I expected.”

Schiewe said his experience with Baker City officials has been much more positive.

“The city and public works have been awesome — 10 out of 10,” he said.

Schiewe chuckled when asked about a timeline for reopening, given the delays over the past several months.

But he said the current project — excavating the 16-foot-deep vault where the two new fuel tanks will be installed — is going well.

The tanks, each with a capacity of 20,000 gallons, are scheduled to be placed on Wednesday, June 11.

Because the width of the tank vault is limited, he had to hire a company to install metal posts and panels to solidify the walls.

Schiewe said that although the remodeled gas station will be a Texaco franchise, and the convenience store is part of the ExtraMile chain, the Humble’s sign will go up, too.

There was never any question about that, he said.

As important as preserving the name is maintaining the level of service that Emery established, Schiewe said.

“It’s a local spot and I intend on keeping it that way,” he said. “I’m very excited to get back to pumping gas and talking to people.”

Schiewe said he moved to Baker City in 2006. But his connection to the town dates to 1994, when his parents moved to Hereford.

After working in construction starting at age 18, Schiewe said he decided to shift careers.

In addition to Humble’s, he bought two other established businesses — first Ragsdale Mobile Glass, then Paul’s Transmissions.

He operates both at the Paul’s Transmissions shop just across Clark Street from Humble’s.

“I’m invested in this town,” Schiewe said. “I love Baker.”

He said he has mortgaged both his home and two apartment buildings to make the Humble’s remodeling possible.

Schiewe said his total investment will likely be around $1.2 million.