Granite Hotel on life-support; end may be near

Posted by
Mike Buffington
in Winder Archives
Thursday, March 10. 2011
Comments (12)
If a buyer or developer isn't found soon for Winder's old Granite Hotel, it may be torn down.

That was the message Monday from the Winder City Council as it debated a number of "eyesore" issues in town.

City administrator Don Toms said there have been some inquiries about the Granite Hotel, but no solid proposals.

Toms said his biggest fear is that a company will take the building from the city at little cost and then sit on it hoping to profit from resale rather than redeveloping it.

“Because the building itself is not sturdy, I’m afraid the longer it sits there, any severe weather that comes along may weaken it more,” Toms said.

So while the DDA continues to try to market the site for redevelopment, he said he would research the cost of demolishing it.

For more details on the Granite Hotel and other city issues, see the March 9 issue of the Barrow Journal.
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#1 fireman on 03/10/11 at 06:53 PM [Reply]
would be cheaper to tear it down, the roof has collapsed, and the next floor is coming in due to the weight, time to tear it down. as much as i like old buildings, it does not make sense to keep it standing in its present condition, and its a collapse hazard the longer it stays in its current state.
#2 maybe... on 03/10/11 at 09:25 PM [Reply]
the granite hotel could be bulldozed and a lovely park could be put in its place? (Grant-funded of course.) One with grass and play equipment and benches? It's across from the old courthouse and the historic museum and would certainly improve the look of downtown. Maybe there's more than one way to kick some life into a dead horse?
#3 SaveOurHistory on 03/11/11 at 08:32 AM [Reply]
Wouldn't it be a shame to loose another historic building in Winder? I grow tired of people saying "It would be easier to tear it down" or "It's cheaper to tear it down". I heard them say it about the old church and yet the lot still sits empty.
The hotel roof is not collapsed fireman, it was removed by the shister company that the city of Winder hired to "renovate" the building. Because of that the responsibility falls on the City of Winder to make it right.
This is one of the last buildings remaining that has granite from Stone Mountain, this doesn't effect Winder, it effects the state of Georgia. We have a responsibility to preserve our state's history, and this building is part of that history. This building should stay and not become a park...you want a park tear down the useless gazebo.
#4 Tear it down on 03/11/11 at 09:47 PM [Reply]
Just tear it down. getting tired of hear ppl say we need to save it and rebuild it and nothing ever done about it. So I say tear it down built something else their,
#5 fireman on 03/12/11 at 08:25 AM [Reply]
really, i have seen it from the top on the ladder truck, it has collapsed. not removed.
#6 Cameron on 03/12/11 at 12:41 PM [Reply]
Yes Fireman is correct. The roof collapsed in when the first crew was in there tearing out walls and moving others. The roof was in such bad shape, it could not take it. Saveourhistory... The building should be removed. But here is the problem. A park is no good. You would have to cross highway 211 to get to either the old courthouse and the jail. And where would you park??? I thought that a parking deck was a good idea but you could not get in or out. We already had a death there when the police is present and traffic was slowed.
Here is my thoughts... Tear the thing down as well as the NAPA, The service station and the Wannabe BBQ joint and fix the traffic problems coming off of 211..
Oh yea, while I'm here making everybody mad, the Peskins Building needs to go too. When I walked by it last week, The display windows had moss growing on the carpet.
#6.1 Eminent Domain on 03/12/11 at 05:18 PM [Reply]
You know, some of those building you mention just might be private property? But the state should just "buy" anything you think needs "fixing" and make it conform to your ideas, huh? Well, when the state determines that your house is in the way of "progress," don't expect sympathy when you start bawling like a little girl.
#6.1.1 Joe on 03/13/11 at 06:48 AM [Reply]
How about Inverse Condemnation as well as Eminent Domain? Got a case of that going on here in Barrow County as well.
#7 laj on 03/13/11 at 10:15 PM [Reply]
I love historical buildings. But if it is in disrepair. Maybe when they tear down the building some of the materials could be reclaimed to go into another project, so some of the history could be preserved.
#8 Fred Sanford on 03/14/11 at 11:32 AM [Reply]
I have some of stone mountain in my back yard also... can the city come out and save it? Seriously, I get historical buildings, and the need to save them, but sometimes you just have to step back and look at it from another perspective. The building is made from granite... other than that what historical signifigance is there to it? Just because something is old doesn't mean it is signifigant... I have some underwear that might qualify otherwise
#8.1 Tony Garcia on 03/14/11 at 01:49 PM [Reply]
Actually Winder has a lot of history in that one small portion of downtown alone. The Granite Hotel is the only major hotel of Winder's early heydey. It contained the first Post Office of Winder, which later became a bank. I believe that prior to the old courthouse, it also served as the county government offices for a short period. At least until the old boarding house which used to sit where the old courthouse was moved to a small cul-de-sac that faced the train station. The Granite Hotel was a ritzy place to stay in Winder when you had vaudeville (America's first type of travelling entertainment) come to town. If you you don't know this, Vaudeville was held in the Opera House building in which Loco's and the radio station are located. People used to come from far away to see the lectures and entertainment. I mean did you ever wonder why there was an Opera House in Winder?
It would be ashame to tear it down without even trying to consult or get a grant from State of Georgia or even the city of Stone Mountain. If you don't know this already, your history is you link to the past. While we are able to, we need to preserve the historical buildings. By the way, the destruction of the 100 year old church was a phenominally stupid idea. I think that when you are faced with spending $1 mil on a roof on a church that has stood for a hundred years, or spending the equivalent (or more) on a new property to build a new church, it sounds unwise and like your not being a good steward.
#9 longtime in Winder on 03/23/11 at 12:41 AM [Reply]
Toms sure is the expert on everything for the "new guy" in town, I wonder every time I hear him speak if we made the wrong choice. (I am not sure he understands our community at all)

We passed on at least one deal to save the building. Once gone none of the Historic Buildings will ever, EVER be rebuilt, gone forever, no change of heart. Winder has lost many of its Downtown Buildings in the past already. The Granite Hotel was not the only hotel in town, it is historic but mainly it is Not an eyesore (but it might not be so safe). What is the parking deck for? We moved 80% of the Courthouse Operations to "out in the woods", Partee's Service Station is the last of it's kind (the LAST FULL SERVICE Station left), We don’t even build parks when we have vacant lots, now we need a park in downtown? I say restore them all. Get SCAD to come up to Winder, they have done great works in Savannah (and other places like New York City, etc) --lets start a remote SCAD Campus and see if we can restore and retain some of our aging Downtown. MANY cities have no "real" downtowns and we want to doze ours further under. Food for thought.

(Note: SCAD is the Savannah College of Art & Design which as projects has restored large run-down houses & buildings all over historical Savannah & the U.S.)
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