When Pete Verdery first heard of the Augusta Common project, he knew he wanted to be a part of it. So 18 years ago, he bought the old cotton warehouse on Reynolds Street that now fronts the west side of the park.
"It's been a long time coming, no doubt," said Mr. Verdery, who plans to convert the ground level into office space for his apartment-management business and the second floor into loft apartments overlooking the park. "But I think it will be worth the wait."
Julian Osbon, who owns the building on Broad Street that fronts the west side of the park, has similar plans for loft apartments and also has investors interested in bars and restaurants that will front the Common at ground level.
"The storefronts will be cut into the brick and run along the sidewalk in the park," said Mr. Osbon, who is looking into grants from the city to rework the building's facade.
City officials and downtown entrepreneurs hope the Common will be a catalyst for similar economic development from Reynolds Street to Greene Street.
The Common is the latest project in the city's downtown master plan, which has been revised twice since it was drafted in 1982. The project's first phase has either influenced or led directly to a bevy of residential, office and retail development downtown.
Augusta Renaissance Partners, a group that includes downtown entrepreneurs Turner Simkins and Julian Roberts, is close to securing financing to convert into loft apartments the top three floors of the former JB White department store in the 900 block of Broad Street.
The group is compiling construction estimates on converting the old boot factory building at the corner of Ellis and Ninth streets into a six-unit condo complex with secure parking, Mr. Simkins said.
More people will be working downtown within the next year. The Richmond County School District plans to consolidate its administrative offices in the 800 block of Broad Street by November 2003, bringing 200 employees downtown.
Mr. Osbon, who owns nearly $2.5 million worth of downtown property, said residential development influenced by the Common will likely lead to more retail development and business opportunities.
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Julian Osbon, the owner of the building at 851 Broad St., which overlooks the Augusta Common, has plans to build loft apartments on the property. He also is working to attract bars and restaurants that would front the new park at ground level.
ANNETTE M. DROWLETTE/STAFF |
"There's a good, solid residential base downtown, and it's an attractive demographic: military, doctors, lawyers, artists, bankers, young people," Mr. Osbon said. "You're already seeing what it will produce in new real estate opportunities and creating jobs.
"It's a logical progression: Improving the appearance of downtown will make it more desirable for prospective businesses and residents."
The activity is starting to show. Silla Cafe, located next to the Common on Broad Street, recently completed a $30,000 expansion in anticipation of the new park.
The owners of the Cotton Patch restaurant off Reynolds also are banking on additional traffic. They plan to double the indoor seating capacity and build a new outdoor dining courtyard that will face the Common's second phase, which will extend north from Reynolds to the riverfront.
"You can drive down Broad Street now and see my restaurant," said Cotton Patch co-owner Bryan Mitchell. "The park will help tie in Broad Street to Reynolds and the riverwalk. It'll be a good-sized venue to get people downtown."
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