Council rejects Granite Hotel funds

Unswayed by passionate arguments from preservationists, the Winder City Council on Thursday night voted unanimously to reject $500,000 in federal funding for the restoration of the century-old Granite Hotel.

Mayor Chip Thompson and several council members said the city does not have the resources for the required local match for the project.

The federal strings attached to the deal would require the city to pay 58 percent of every invoice as the hotel is renovated. The government also set a 12-month deadline for the completion of the project.

Mike Rice, the chairman of the Winder Downtown Development Authority that owns the hotel property, also said he is concerned that the preliminary cost estimate for the project may be wrong.

If the cost were to exceed the initial $1.2 million estimate, the city government would have to cover out of the city's general operating fund more than the original $729,000 local match.

About 35 supporters of the hotel, most of them from the Barrow Preservation Society Inc., attended the meeting.

Some addressed the council before the vote, arguing that the investment in the hotel could spark a revival of the downtown area.

Others expressed their disappointment to the mayor and council after the meeting adjourned.

Comments

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#1 Registered Voter on 08/20/10 at 10:57 AM [Reply]

Thank goodness! It's time to tear down this eyesore and move forward.

#2 mark my words on 08/20/10 at 11:13 AM [Reply]

Thank God! Now maybe this whole mess is over and the city can tear it down and put up a parking lot or sell it to try and recoup some of the money burned on this white elephant!

#2.1 Anonymous on 08/20/10 at 02:31 PM [Reply]

There's a parking lot just one block over and a few blocks up, near the post office. Every time I drive by that lot, it's empty. There is another off 211, by the old funeral home turned special events venue and it's always empty. So why do we want another parking lot?

#2.1.1 MKR on 08/20/10 at 03:11 PM [Reply]

Neither of those lots is particularly inviting. Visibility is poor (less secure for person and property) at the one by Locos, and the post office lot is a good distance from everything you might want to do in town.

The whole downtown area is just not comfortable to be in. It feels so dead because there's no activity.

The only place that seems lively is the produce stand, and that's because the owner comes out to meet you when you pull up, and there always seems to be someone coming or going.

#3 Anonymous on 08/20/10 at 02:54 PM [Reply]

Now they can afford to put in a turn lane for the New Court House. Nobody goes to Winder for anything anyways. It is just one of those towns that you pass through on your way to Buford or Athens...

#3.1 Blue Tooth on 08/23/10 at 10:43 AM [Reply]

Winder money has nothing to do with funds for a turn lane on a state route. If intelligence and grammatical skill were criteria for posting, then the entries here would be diminished by about 99%.

#4 Anonymous on 08/20/10 at 05:15 PM [Reply]

Thank Goodness the Winder City Council had the sense to not spend money they don't have like our current leaders in Washington are doing.

#5 anonymous on 08/20/10 at 06:03 PM [Reply]

I all for tearing it down, but a parking lot would not be good ether. I saw tear it down and sell the land for someone to develop some kind of busines. you bring in the business of someone tearing it down then you sell the land some build something there and you have business come in it's a win win situation for everyone!

#5.1 MKR on 08/20/10 at 08:26 PM [Reply]

They've been trying to sell the remnants of that old church as office space since tearing it down and it doesn't look like they've had any luck.

There has to be something that can be done to that space that would make Winder appealing to investors.

My memory on it is not great, but I remember when I went to the museum, the lady there told me they had a bunch of exhibits boxed up because they had no room.

Are there any interesting statues or large things in those boxes that could be made the centerpiece of a small park? I probably should have asked when I was there.

Make a history park--plaques and stuff--and turn part of the court into a museum. That courthouse is probably the nicest building here, and if the area around were made an attraction, Winder might just see some investment.

Business-wise, it's a great spot. We have a good BBQ place (even though I'm not so fond of what's on the TV), a thriving custom clothing business (http://www.amazinghippie.com/), and a few other businesses.

Turn that in to an attraction, make the parking all around there visible and inviting, and watch investors fall over each other to build stuff here.

#5.1.1 Anonymous on 08/23/10 at 07:57 AM [Reply]

The old baptist church was a deathtrap waiting to happen. It was structurally unsound - that's why the city fathers had the good sense to stay away from anything to do with it. I think that the old granite hotel should be put to it's original use - let's turn it into a bordello.

#5.1.1.1 MKR on 08/23/10 at 10:13 AM [Reply]

Oh yeah, I wasn't commenting on the merits of tearing it down.

I was saying that the part still standing (which seems to have been built within the last 30 years) is being sold as office space, and it's still unsold.

If we had a new hotel in Winder, who would stay in it?

The distance between Athens and Atlanta isn't enough to need to overnight here, and there are plenty of hotels in both cities.

I can't imagine a vacation planned around Fort Yargo. It would make more sense to plan it for Athens where all the attractions are, then plan a short drive to Winder if you had any desire to go to the park.

As it stands, there's a hundred restaurants if I'm coming back from Athens or other cities and want to eat out for supper, and every other thing I might have done in downtown Winder would already be done during the trip.

A park would at least be a reason to come to downtown Winder. If there were a park there, I know I would spend more money at the businesses. A half million people go to Fort Yargo every year (that's around 1,300 a day). So we know that a park will get people to come to the area.

We just need to get them to go a little bit north, and we know a nice park (and I mean nice--walking paths, benches, green space) can do that.

If nothing else, let's convince someone to open a bicycle shop downtown. We've got miles and miles of trails, and regular mountain biking events. It seems weird that we don't have a shop yet.

#6 Jack Legg on 08/20/10 at 07:12 PM [Reply]

I say good ridence.Back when those neandertals tore down the first baptist church these winder city councils and mayor did nothing to stop it,and that was a beautiful ,grand old building that really meant somthing to the people here.Then they threw away hundreds of thouseabds of dollars to restore a hunk of junk that has always been an eyesore before decideng to throw that money away too, these people are not serving the public interest ,they never have and never will unitl they are all run out of office at the ballot box.

#7 coolbluerick84 on 08/20/10 at 08:48 PM [Reply]

They could tear it down....No! better yet, burn the damn thing down. Be sure to tear down the Peskin's Department store as well and fill up our landfills with it, its in bad shape also. As long as Winder is poor we are going to loose all our historic pride. There's no way of preserving our history. Not only that but Winder will remain a dump and the city will further deteriorate which could attract crime. Here's a idea we could, Little by little, demolish the worst part of downtown Winder and rebuild the buildings to look historic with nice recreational parks, Parking Decks and wider roads for better traffic flows. That could take years but then again in years to come the town will further loose whats left of its charm and will be nothing more than a slum town. What now City Council? How do you plan to complete the 2020 Vision and the LCI goals with no money.

#8 James Spencer on 08/20/10 at 09:01 PM [Reply]

Finally. The City of Winder actually did something that makes fiscal sense...

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Council rejects Granite Hotel funds

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Council rejects Granite Hotel funds

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