Work will soon begin to stabilizing the Bailey Building/Masonic Temple, also known as the old Elberton Drug building, located at 23 N. Public Square.
According to City Manager Lanier Dunn, the building is the oldest known surviving structure in downtown Elberton. The first floor exterior brick has evidence of being built around the time of the Civil War, and the second floor exterior brick dates to the early 1880s.
Dunn said the project will take approximately five months to complete and involves extensive brick repair work, installing a steel structure inside the building to support the existing walls and structure, a new roof and restoration of various historic elements still existing in the exterior of the structure.
During this time, the front sidewalk along the public square will be barricaded for safety, and the parking spaces directly in front of the building will also be blocked so that work can proceed on the building, affecting the spaces in front of The Elberton Star office.
The rear pedestrian alley will be blocked for safety for an extended period of time during the project.
“This is a two story building with unstable masonry, so precautions such as blocking pedestrian and vehicular access is a requirement,” Dunn said.
Dunn said as a reminder, parking is time limited to two hours between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Mondays through Saturdays, on North and South Public Square and on McIntosh Street.
Parking is not time limited on James Street, Heard Street, Church Street, or in the James Street parking lots or the Swift parking lot.
“Although we realize any construction work downtown has the potential to be inconvenient to downtown patrons, residents, and visitors, we know that all downtown stakeholders will ultimately benefit from the restoration and rehabilitation of historic structures that cannot be replaced,” Dunn said.
The project is taking place through a partnership with the Elberton Downtown Development Authority (DDA), the City of Elberton and the State of Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA).
The Elberton City Council voted in October to approve a bid from Garland and Associates for almost $1 million for the renovations for the building.
The total bid, at $989,000 will be paid mostly through a $732,000 grant award from the DCA with the remaining $257,000 coming from the city.
The stabilization will be the first step in renovating the building.